TV & Toddlers

The USA Today just published a new study showing that too much time watching tv or playing video games can more than double a child's risk of attention problems. Now, you might be thinking "duh," but I know many children who watch far more than the recommended max of 2 hrs/day given by the American Academy of Pediatrics for children 2+. The recommendation for children under 2 is 0 television.

There are many reasons for this, one major one being that their developing brains can't process the quickly moving images as one fluid action and so it's almost like a strobe light effect and the brains are trained to jump so quickly from image to image that they have a difficult time developing the ability to focus. As they grow, they may be able to grasp the visual stimulation, but can't necessarily connect that if a character behaves badly early on in a show, that chastisement or a negative outcome later on is directly related to that wrong action. The child will mimic whatever they see on television simply because they just do what they see. They aren't necessarily capable of discerning right from wrong, especially when it's shown over the course of a half an hour, rather than explained to them concretely (hitting is wrong, sharing is nice).

Another study of the exposure to television at age 2, found that watching too much TV as toddlers later forecasted:

• a seven percent decrease in classroom engagement;
• a six percent decrease in math achievement (with no harmful effects on later reading);
• a 10 percent increase in victimization by classmates (peer rejection, being teased, assaulted or insulted by other students);
• a 13 percent decrease in weekend physical activity;
• a nine percent decrease in general physical activity;
• a 10 percent peak in snacks intake;
• a five percent increase in BMI.

In our home, we've made it a rule to strictly limit television with our children, particularly to none until over the age of 2. My firstborn is approaching her 2nd birthday, and while we have recently been a bit more lax about it, allowing her to watch one show maybe once a week on a day when she's not napping, or something on a long car ride, we have just re-commited our family to no television for her at all. She's turning 2, so the fallen nature is sadly, starting to show itself more, and I don't want to take any chances. Also, I find that when we give in to one show, she wants to watch another, because it is enticing. It's easy, it's entertaining, but it's not the best thing for her development, as science continues to show us. It is incredibly challenging as a parent to avoid it, and it's certainly not the end of the world if they watch a bit on a special occassion, or when parent is out of commission, but I know it's a habit I want to strive to avoid.

I highly encourage all parents to check out these recent articles:

TV, Video Games and Attention Span

Toddlers and TV