It's hard enough for parents to set expectations for children when everyone can see an immediate result, like a clean room or a grade; it is even harder to set expectations for children when it takes months to see the outcome, like the benefits that come from limiting screen time.
A study by
Iowa State University, published in
JAMA Pediatrics, says reducing the amount of time children spend on the computer or in front of the TV, as well as monitoring content, will help them sleep more, do better in school, behave better and lower the risk of obesity. But these results don't happen immediately, making it hard for parents and kids to buy into decreasing screen time, reports Newswise, a research-reporting service.
The study suggests parents find a healthy balance with screen time. The
American Association of Pediatrics recommends that children under 2 not watch any television, and that older children have no more than one or two hours of screen time a day.
Fifty-six percent of children in Kentucky spend more than two hours a day playing video games, watching television, videos or DVDs, or on the computer, according to a 2012 survey of parents by the
Foundation for a Healthy Kentucky. The children in the Iowa study averaged more than 40 hours of screen time a week, not counting time spent on a computer at school.
The study analyzed the media habits of more than 1,300 school-aged children who were recruited to participate in an obesity prevention program. Students and parents were surveyed about screen time, exposure to violent media, bedtime and behavior. Teachers reported grades and commented on student behavior. School nurses measured student's height and weight. Data were collected at the start of the program and seven months later at the end of the program and collective patterns were identified.
KidsHealth.org makes these suggestions to create good TV habits in your home:
1. Limit TV-watching hours
2. Put other things to do in the TV room: books, kids' magazines, toys, puzzles, games
3. Keep TVs and internet connections out of the bedrooms
4. Turn the TV off during meals
5. Don't allow kids to watch TV while doing homework
6. Treat TV as a privilege to be earned
7. Establish and enforce family TV viewing rules
8. Record and watch only the shows you want your kids to watch
Kentucky ranks high in child obesity. Parents can make sure their children maintain a healthy weight with three simple suggestions highlighted in recent studies: Serve them meals on smaller, child-size plates, pay attention to what they watch...
Kids who have TVs in their bedrooms are twice as likely to be fat and nearly three times as likely to be at risk for heart disease and diabetes as those who don?t, according to a new study that elevates concerns about health and screen time. The research,...
Watching TV commercials, not the sedentary act of watching TV itself, contributes to obesity in children, according to a study published by the American Journal of Public Health. The study found that the average child sees about 4,000 television commercials...
Researchers at the University of Michigan Cardiovascular Center have found poor health habits, not heredity, are making children fat. Check-ups of 1,003 Michigan sixth-graders showed children who were obese were "more likely to consume school lunch instead...
By Dr. Madelyn Fernstrom Pediatricians have made a strong statement (and a very positive one in my view) about screen time and young children. The new policy just released from the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children under the age...