Obesity in children with tablets and phones
The effects of tablets and phones on childhood obesity
Before the advent of all kinds of communication devices, only television was known as an effective factor in overweight people, especially children. The proliferation of tablets and smartphones has now led to obesity in children while watching TV.
Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Public Health conducted a survey from 2013 to 2015 with the participation of about 25,000 teens ages 9 to 12 who came up with some interesting results about high-risk behaviors in young people.
They measured the following: the number of hours people spend on electronic devices (such as smartphones, tablets, computers, and video games), as well as the number of hours spent watching TV, the number of hours spent, the number of sugary drinks. And the sugar consumed in the last week and the amount of physical activity (at least 60 minutes per day) in the last week.
The result was that about 20 percent of American teens spend more than five hours a day using a variety of electronic devices, and only 8 percent of them spend those hours watching television. Excessive television viewing is also associated with obesity and poor diet among adolescents.
Tablets and phones affect children’s obesity more than TVs
But the main finding of this study is that adolescents who spend more than 5 hours a day looking at the screens of phones and tablets are twice as likely to drink sugary drinks and not get enough sleep or exercise, and about 43 They are more likely to become obese than teens who do not spend much time on these devices.
Although this study can not definitively attribute the high rate of obesity to the use of various electronic devices, the findings of this study raise concerns about youth behaviors. Instead of restricting children and adolescents from watching TV, it may be best to avoid over-engaging in the use of various electronic devices with optical screens.
