We know you’ve heard this before, but new research confirms what earlier studies have told us – we need to seriously limit the amount of television our babies and preschoolers are watching.
A new study reported in the May issue of Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine found that for each additional hour of television viewed per week at age 29 months, children were less engaged in school and had lower math scores in fourth grade. The more television children watched, the worse their dietary habits, the higher their body mass indexes, the more videos games they played, and the less physically active they were years later.
After adjusting for various individual and family factors, every additional hour of television watched per week at 29 months was associated in the fourth grade with a:
- 7 percent decrease in classroom engagement
- 6 percent decrease in teacher-rated mathematics achievement
- 10 percent increase in teacher-rated victimization by classmates
- 10 percent increase parent-reported video game use
- 13 percent decrease in time spent being physically active on weekends
- 9 percent decrease in general fitness score and in the inclination to perform activities that involved physical effort
- 9 percent and 10 percent increased consumption of soft drinks and snacks, respectively
- 16 percent decrease in consumption of fruits and vegetables
- 5 percent increase in BMI
That’s every additional hour per week, not per day.
The American Academy of Pediatrics advises parents not to allow any television viewing for children under 2 years old and recommends no more than two hours of quality programming per day in older children. This study provides another reminder that we should probably be listening to our children’s doctors.
Read more about this recent study here.
May 19th, 2010 | Category: Health and Wellness
