The effect of watching TV on childhood obesity
Limit children’s use of television, movies, video and computer games to one to two hours a day. Because too much of this activity leads to childhood obesity. One of the most common problems for children, especially in big cities, is their excessive weight gain. Today, this problem has arisen even in families where obesity is not inherited due to sedentary lifestyle and excessive television watching.
Watching too much TV leads to obesity
According to a new study, watching TV for even an hour a day can increase the risk of weight gain and obesity in children. Watching TV not only causes weight gain due to inactivity, but also obesity due to an increase in food intake without attention. In addition, TV commercials can have a detrimental effect on children’s diets at other times of the day. American and British children are said to be exposed to 10 food advertisements per hour while watching television programs, most of which are fast foods, sugary drinks and high-sugar breakfast cereals.
Unfortunately, in addition to these studies, it has been shown that eating while watching TV is inversely related to the amount of healthy foods that are not commonly advertised (such as fruits and vegetables).
Convenient time to watch TV
“Children who watch TV for one to two hours a day, compared to children who watch less than that,” said Dr. Mark de Boer, head of the research team at the University of Virginia. “They are more prone to overweight and obesity in kindergarten and first grade.”
The study was conducted on more than 11,000 kindergarten children between 2012 and 2011, during which time each child was in front of a TV or computer screen, as well as the height and weight of the children.
This study showed that children who watched TV for 1-2 hours a day were about 47% more likely to be obese and overweight than children who spent less than this time in front of the TV. Children are more likely to be obese.
Researchers advise parents to ban the use of any electronic video device, such as TVs, computers, and tablets, for children under the age of two, and to limit this time to less than 1-2 hours for older children.
How to limit TV viewing time?
The TV is not always on
Keep the TV and computer out of the child’s bedroom
Do not eat in front of the TV
Set rules for school days
Suggest other activities
It is difficult to start limiting your child’s TV viewing time, especially if your child has a TV in his room or you have always eaten in front of the TV. But know that it’s worth it. Making new household rules and following them will make small changes to your child’s routine that you will see positive effects later.
