ad info




CNN.com
 MAIN PAGE
 WORLD
 U.S.
 LOCAL
 POLITICS
 WEATHER
 BUSINESS
 SPORTS
 TECHNOLOGY
 SPACE
* HEALTH
 AIDS
 Aging
 Alternative
 Cancer
 Children
 Diet & Fitness
 Men
 Women
 ENTERTAINMENT
 BOOKS
 TRAVEL
 FOOD
 ARTS & STYLE
 NATURE
 IN-DEPTH
 ANALYSIS
 myCNN

 Headline News brief
 news quiz
 daily almanac

  MULTIMEDIA:
 video
 video archive
 audio
 multimedia showcase
 more services

  E-MAIL:
Subscribe to one of our news e-mail lists.
Enter your address:
Or:
Get a free e-mail account

 DISCUSSION:
 message boards
 chat
 feedback

  CNN WEB SITES:
CNN Websites
 AsiaNow
 En Español
 Em Português
 Svenska
 Norge
 Danmark
 Italian

 FASTER ACCESS:
 europe
 japan

 TIME INC. SITES:
 CNN NETWORKS:
Networks image
 more networks
 transcripts

 SITE INFO:
 help
 contents
 search
 ad info
 jobs

 WEB SERVICES:

  health > story page AIDSAlternative MedicineCancerDiet & FitnessHeartMenSeniorsWomen

Television's effects on kids: It can be harmful

August 20, 1999
Web posted at: 9:34 AM EDT (1334 GMT)


In this story:

TV viewing and poor school performance

TV violence affects kids

Heavy tv viewing, heavy kids

Late-night television leads to daytime sleepiness

RELATEDSicon



By Daphne Miller, M.D.


TABLE RULES TO WATCH BY
There are things that parents can do to help their children get the maximum benefit from television, while avoiding the ill effects:

1. Set TV-watching time to no more than two hours each day for everyone in the household. It is important for parents to stick to this rule themselves, since kids model their behavior after their parents.
2. Choose the shows with your child, trying to steer them toward educational programs. Avoid shows with violent material. If you have trouble controlling what your child watches, consider a lockbox on the television.
3. Have your children pick shows that are not too late and will not interfere with daily routines such as meals and homework.
4. Do not use the television as a babysitter; instead, watch the show with your child. This is especially important for children under 10, because they often have difficulty telling the difference between fantasy and reality and may need you to explain things.
5. Avoid snacking or having family meals in front of the television.
6. Do not allow your children to have TV sets in their bedrooms. This makes it more difficult for you to regulate what your child watches and doesn't promote family togetherness.
7. Most importantly, encourage your children to do other things besides watching television. Do an art project together, read a book, or get out of the house and go to the playground or the zoo. In other words, don't watch life ... live it!

(WebMD) -- The average child in the United States spends about 25 hours a week in front of the television (including the use of VCR), according to the latest annual Media in the Home survey, conducted by the Annenberg Public Policy Center -- a number significantly exceeding the maximum limit suggested by the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP). In 1990, the AAP issued a recommendation that children watch no more than one to two hours of "quality" television a day. Just two weeks ago, the AAP came out with stricter guidelines, published in the August issue of Pediatrics: Children under age 2, they say, should not watch television at all, and older kids should not have televisions in their bedrooms.

Why such seemingly tight limitations? Over the past several decades a number of studies have shown that there are several ways that television can be harmful to the mental and physical health of children. That's not to say that all television is bad for kids. In fact, a number of quality children's shows -- such as the popular preschool show "Blue's Clues" and, of course, "Sesame Street" -- engage kids in positive ways. However, when children watch television frequently and indiscriminately, the effects can be detrimental.

TV viewing and poor school performance

Only a handful of programs teach children important skills such as math, reading, science or problem solving. Most of the shows on television, including cartoons, are noneducational. More time spent watching these shows is linked with poorer school performance overall and decreased scores on standardized tests. This makes sense when you consider that more time spent in front of a television means less time spent on homework or having stimulating interactions with adults or other children. In addition, late-night TV watching tires kids out so that they can't pay attention in school. Also, television hands kids all the answers, promoting passive learning and short attention spans. As a result, kids have difficulty concentrating and working hard to solve a problem.

TV violence affects kids

In many instances, TV programming promotes negative behavior. Perhaps the most prevalent example of this is violence. Even shows designed for children are not necessarily violence-free. The Media in the Home survey found that 28 percent of all children's shows contained four-or-more incidents of violence per show -- a number that media experts consider high. Several studies have shown that a child is more likely to display violent or antisocial behavior depending on the degree of violence and the total number of violent programs he or she watches.

Heavy tv viewing, heavy kids

There appears to be a strong relationship between time spent in front of the television and being overweight. In fact, this past March the American Medical Association held a special briefing in New York City to alert parents about the well-proven link between TV viewing and obesity. This well-known "couch-potato" syndrome is probably the result of taking in too many calories (junk food -- which is advertised on television -- stuffed in unconciously as kids stare at the screen) and not burning up enough calories (sitting still rather than running around and playing). But the effects are reversible: Three studies have demonstrated that overweight children lost weight as they decreased their TV viewing.

Late-night television leads to daytime sleepiness

TV watching (especially late-night and violent shows) has been connected with poor sleep patterns in children. The emotional stress caused by the shows could be preventing children from getting to sleep and cause nightmares. In turn, abnormal sleep patterns can cause children to be less alert during the day, also contributing to poor school performance.

Copyright 1999 WebMD, Inc. All rights reserved.



RELATEDS AT WebMD:
Go Out and Play
Media Violence

RELATED SITES:
Pediatrics
American Academy of Pediatrics: Understanding the Impact of the Media
The Annenburg Public Policy Center
Note: Pages will open in a new browser window
External sites are not endorsed by CNN Interactive.

LATEST HEALTH STORIES:
China SARS numbers pass 5,000
Report: Form of HIV in humans by 1940
Fewer infections for back-sleeping babies
Pneumonia vaccine may help heart, too
 LATEST HEADLINES:
SEARCH CNN.com
Enter keyword(s)   go    help

Back to the top   © 2001 Cable News Network. All Rights Reserved.
Terms under which this service is provided to you.
Read our privacy guidelines.