- A landmark study headed by Dr. Dimitri Christakis at the University of Washington showed that for every hour per day that preschool boys spent watching violent TV shows, they had three times the risk of developing behavioral problems at age 7. This was true even when they were watching cartoons on commercial channels, which often have more violence than adult shows.
- For each hour of TV young kids watch, they have a 10% higher chance of attention problems at age 7, including restlessness, trouble concentrating, and impulsive behavior.
- Rapidly changing visual images may over stimulate and rewire preschoolers' developing brains. Learning to read and write takes time and patience. Kids who are used to the fast pace and instant gratification of screen media may easily get bored.
- More than two hours daily of screen time also increases the odds that kids will be overweight. They are exposed to a barrage of ads for high-caloric, sugary foods — and when they are sitting in front of a screen, they are not running, jumping, and moving around.
You may be interested in a brief, informative and
fascinating TEDx Talk Dr. Christakis gave last December. The video link is: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoT7qH_uVNo
.
You may also be
interested in the book Dr. Christakis co-authored with Dr. Fred Zimmerman, The Elephant
in the Living Room: Make Television Work
for Your Kids. An informative website about the book is: http://www.maketvwork.com/ .
Other important books on brain development and screen time you might consider:
Your Child's Growing Mind: Brain Development and Learning From Birth to Adolescence by Jane M. Healy (May 25, 2004)
Endangered Minds: Why Children Don't Think And What We Can Do About It by Jane M. Healy (Oct 15, 1999)
- FAILURE TO CONNECT: How Computers Affect Our Children's Minds -- and What We Can Do About It by Jane M. Healy (Oct 15, 1999)
Small changes now in your child's screen viewing habits can make a big difference in the early years. Please hit the comment button to share with the rest of the Kidspace community the ideas your family has come up with and what agreements you've made as a family about your children's media exposure and screen time guidelines in your household.
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