Improve Children's Mental Health – Turn Off the TV

Obesity is a global epidemic, in adults and children. The increase in childhood obesity has been linked to behavioral and environmental factors: decreased physical activity and increased television viewing.

Now it is clear that these activities are detrimental not only to physical health, but also psychological health.

A recent study published in the journal Pediatrics suggests that television viewing and physical inactivity are determinants of psychological distress in children.

TV makes children sedentary and inactive. Late night TV watching causes nightmares and acts as a hindrance in concentrating in school and solving problems.
Most of the children watch cartoon channels. They become addicted to such channels and waste their precious time. TV is bad for our eyes and it also leads to Obesity. There is a strong relationship between TV viewing and obesity. Children take in too many calories in the form of junk food which is advertised on the television and do not burn enough calories sitting still rather playing in the open air.

Health experts have long linked excessive TV-watching to obesity — a significant health problem today. While watching TV, kids are inactive and tend to snack. They're also bombarded with ads that encourage them to eat unhealthy foods such as potato chips and empty-calorie soft drinks that often become preferred snack foods.

Too much television can be detrimental:

•  Children who consistently spend more than 4 hours per day watching TV are more likely to be overweight.

•  Kids who view violent acts are more likely to show aggressive behavior but also fear that the world is scary and that something bad will happen to them.

•  TV characters often depict risky behaviors, such as smoking and drinking, and also reinforce gender-role and racial stereotypes.

Dr Sigman has found evidence that too much TV watching causes short-sightedness and disrupts hormonal balance and leads to increased risk of cancer and premature puberty. It also slows down the metabolism which is linked to increase in obesity and type 2 diabetes.

Mental problems linked to too much TV viewing include autism, poor concentration and Alzheimer's in adulthood .

1. Time Spent Watching Television. When children spend 3-5 hours a day watching television, time for other activities is severely limited. Childhood is a period of growth and development, when children need to play, alone and with other children. Children need to read and talk with other children and adults.

2. Violence on Television: The amount of violence on television is increasing. A recent report from the National Institute of Mental Health indicates that television violence can be harmful to young children. Children can become frightened, worried or suspicious from watching violence on TV. Researchers have also found that children who watch many violent programs tend to be more aggressive than other children on the playground and in class. Parents should realize that viewing violent programs may encourage their children's tendency toward aggression. Parents also need to keep in mind that television often portrays sexual behavior and the use of alcohol or drugs in realistic or inviting terms.

3. TV and Learning. Many recent studies indicate that excessive television viewing may have a detrimental effect on learning and school performance. The hours spent viewing television interferes with homework and limit the time available for other ways of learning. If a child is not performing well academically, television watching may be a strong factor contributing to the problem.

4. Commercials. The average child sees more than 20,000 commercials a year. Advertisers spend roughly $700 million annually to make sure that their sales pitches reach large numbers of children. The majority of food advertising is for heavily sugared products such as candy and pre-sweetened cereal. Commercials for meat, milk products, bread, and juice make up only about 4% of the food ads shown during children's viewing time. This emphasis can give children a distorted picture of how they ought to eat. A recent study found a direct relationship between amount of television viewing and children's risk of obesity.

Role of Parents:

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

•  Set T.V watching time to no more than 2 hrs each day for everyone in the household. It is important for parents to stick to this rule themselves, since kids model their behaviour after their parents.

•  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.

•  Have your children pick shows that are not too late and will not interfere with daily routines such as meals and homework.

•  Do not use the television as a babysitter, instead, watch the show with your child. This is especially important for children under 10 yrs, because they often have difficulty telling the difference between fantasy and reality and may need you to explain things.

•  Avoid snacking or having family meals in front of the television.

•  Do not allow your children to have T.V sets in their bed-rooms. This makes it more difficult for you to regulate what your child watches and doesn't promote family togetherness.

•  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 zoo. In other words don't watch life… live it!

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