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Recent research tells a discouraging tale about children and television habits.
According to a 2007 study published in the peer-reviewed journal Pediatrics,
sustained television viewing (two or more hours per day from ages 30-33 months
to 5.5 years) was associated with poor behavioral and social skills compared to
children who watched less daily TV. The study also found having a TV in the
child's bedroom contributed to sleep problems and emotional issues at 5.5 years
of age. (A whopping 41 percent of children had a TV in their room at age 5 1/2.)
It's no wonder the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that parents
limit children's TV exposure to no more than one to two hours of quality
programming daily and not keep a TV in their child's bedroom. If there's any
good news, it's that the study found heavy exposure in early childhood did not
have enduring consequences if viewing habits were adjusted; children with early
exposure only (less exposure at 5 1/2 years) did not have behavioral and social
difficulties compared to children with heavy exposure at both ages.
Another study in Pediatrics, published three years earlier, suggests early
television viewing (at ages 1 and 3) can contribute to problems with attention
at age 7. The number of hours viewed per day was associated with an increasing
risk of developing problems with attention span.
So-called "educational" programming may help children learn if parents don't
have the time to teach them, but it doesn't seem to make them any smarter,
according to a 2008 study, again in Pediatrics. Researchers concluded, "Contrary
to parents' perceptions that TV viewing is beneficial to their children's brain
development, we found no evidence of cognitive benefit from watching TV during
the first two years of life."
Other studies suggest a clear link between television viewing in childhood /
adolescence and lack of exercise and poor eating habits. After all, sitting on a
couch all day doesn't leave kids with much time to exercise or eat right,
especially when they're being bombarded with ads for chips, soft drinks and
fast-food items.
The bottom line is, there are plenty of fun, stimulating ways to entertain your
children while teaching them at the same time, and none of them involves staring
into a television or computer screen.
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