Exercising More May Not Be Enough, Unless You Also Shut Off the TV...
Clearly, the vast majority of kids and teens are in dire need of more exercise. However, based on the findings reported in the journal Pediatrics this month, exercising more may not be enough to compensate for the detrimental impact of TV and computer use.
The other side of the equation is shutting off your TV and computer more often...
As reported by Live Science:
"The study found that regardless of age, gender, socioeconomic status, or whether a child had hit puberty, more than two hours a day in front of a TV or computer was associated with more emotional and behavioral difficulties.
Most importantly, the connection between screen time and psychological problems held regardless of how much overall physical activity the kids engaged in."
What that means is that it's not a sedentary lifestyle that poses the greatest risk to your child's mental health, but rather the activities your child engages in while being sedentary.
Other sedentary activities, such as reading or doing homework, had no detrimental impact on the children's mental health.
Another interesting fact was that the total amount of time spent on sedentary activities in general also did not have a negative impact on mental health – only the amount of time spent watching TV or in front of the computer impacted their psychology and behavior.
The researchers found that:
• Children who spent more than two hours a day watching TV or using a computer were 61 and 59 percent more likely to experience high levels of psychological difficulties, respectively
• Children who spent more than two hours a day watching TV, and also failed to meet physical activity guidelines, were 70 percent more likely to experience high levels of psychological difficulties
• This risk increased to 81 percent for children who used a computer for more than two hours a day while also failing to meet recommended exercise guidelines
Watching TV Changes Your Brain Chemistry
While much of the TV debate focuses on advertising messages and the impact of violent or sexually explicit programming on young minds, there's an even more disturbing aspect to television.
As it turns out, TV may be harmful no matter what programs your kids are watching or what ads they're exposed to!
Yes, television in and of itself is one of the most powerful brainwashing devices there is.
According to research by Dr. Aric Sigman, a British psychologist, watching TV actually causes physiological changes – mainly changes in your brain chemistry – and there's nothing beneficial about them.
These changes have little to do with the content you're watching, but rather the fact that when you're watching a TV or computer screen, you're in essence entraining your brain to function and process information differently.
Watching a TV (or computer screen) produces an almost narcotic effect on your brain, actually numbing areas that would be stimulated by other activities, like reading.
And, the longer you watch, the easier your brain slips into a receptive, passive mode, meaning that messages are streamed into your brain without any participation from you. This of course is every advertiser's dream, and accounts for much of the success companies achieve by putting ads on TV.
Watching TV also disrupts the production of the hormone melatonin, according to Dr. Sigman, which could be playing a role in sleep disturbances and even causing early puberty in adolescents.
The 15 Potential Side Effects of Watching TV
Through his research, Dr. Sigman has identified 15 negative effects that he believes can be associated with watching television:
1. Obesity
2. Trouble healing
3. Heart trouble
4. Decreased metabolism
5. Eyesight damage
6. Alzheimer's disease
7. Decreased attention span
8. Hormone disturbances
9. Cancer
10. Early puberty
11. Autism
12. Sleep difficulties
13. Increased appetite
14. Limited brain growth
15. Diabetes
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