SafetyIssues Personal and Public Safety News Articles: Does Bedroom TV Make for Unhealthy Habits?

Does Bedroom TV Make for Unhealthy Habits?
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Staff writer for safetyissues.com on 04/08/08 01:55:00
 
A research team from the University of Minnesota’s School of Public Health
questioned 781 teens (average age was 17.2 years) living in the Minneapolis area
during a two-year period, 2003 and 2004. Their findings confirmed results of
earlier studies that nearly two-thirds (62 percent) of America’s children have
TV sets installed in their own bedrooms. The team proceeded to examine the
consequences of this easy access to TV, especially among older adolescents.
Some of their findings should give a parent pause:
* Adolescents with bedroom TV tended to spend more hours watching it, as much as
5 more hours per week than teens without bedroom TV.
* There were two heavy watchers (at least 5 hours per day) among adolescents who
had bedroom TV for every one adolescent without it.
* Teenage girls preferred to watch their bedroom TV than engage in exercise, and
these girls had only 1.8 hours of exercise a week, while girls without TV in
their rooms got 2.5 exercise hours. Girls with TV also consumed fewer vegetables
but more sweetened beverages, and they joined their family for meals less often.
* Teenage boys with bedroom television chalked up lower grade point averages
than boys who didn’t have TV; they also ate less fruit and shared fewer meals
with the family.
* TV was more likely to be present in boys’ bedrooms (68 percent) than in
girls’ bedrooms (58 percent).
* Adolescents belonging to the highest income families were very much less
likely to have bedroom TV sets than teens from other income levels.
* Bedroom TV was reported by 39 percent of Asian American teens, 60 percent of
whites, 66 percent of Hispanics, and 82 percent of African Americans.
The researchers believe there isn’t always a deliberate plan to put a TV in
the teen’s bedroom. But when the family buys a larger TV, the teen child asks
for the old one.
Health experts would like parents to remember that there is overwhelming
research pointing to deleterious effects of excessive TV watching on grades,
eating habits, children’s affinity to violence, and especially in development
of social relationships.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that parents remove TV sets from
their children’s bedrooms.
Safety Tips:
* Resist firmly any pressure from your kids to put a TV set in their bedroom.
There may be some resentment for a while, but parents should think only of
what’s best for the child.
* Set a good example: limit your own TV viewing and don’t have a TV in your
bedroom.