Children and Tv
Cynthia Bryson
Benjamin Pressley
ENG 111
November 14, 2011
Effects of Children Watching Too Much Television How many hours a week do you think you spend watching television? According to a study done by the A.C. Neilson Company, the average American spends four hours watching television (“Television”). Generally, children watch even more than four hours a week (“How TV Affects Your Child”). Watching this much television can have serious impacts on a child’s health and development (“Colina”). It also shows a lot of things that most people would not consider being appropriate for children. Another problem that arises when children spend this much time in front of a television is that they don’t do as well in school. If children are spending too much time in front of the television, then they are risking serious health problems. The major one that comes to mind is obesity. A recent study found that eleven percent of children between the ages of six and seventeen are obese. This is more than twice the amount of children that were obese in the 1960’s (“Television”).What is so different between the children of today and the children of the ‘60s? The amount of time watching television is the main problem; it means that for the amount of time they are watching television, they are inactive. There is almost nothing that uses less energy than watching television. Another reason children who watch a lot of television tend to gain more weight is that they are constantly watching commercials for unhealthy foods such as potato chips and soft drinks. According to the American Association of Pediatricians (AAP), children in the United States see almost forty thousand commercials each year (‘How TV Affects Your Child). A study done by the UCLA School of Public Health says that by the time a child reaches the age of five, he has seen an average of more than four thousand commercials for food every year (“Television”). Obesity in children also causes heart problems and
Benjamin Pressley
ENG 111
November 14, 2011
Effects of Children Watching Too Much Television How many hours a week do you think you spend watching television? According to a study done by the A.C. Neilson Company, the average American spends four hours watching television (“Television”). Generally, children watch even more than four hours a week (“How TV Affects Your Child”). Watching this much television can have serious impacts on a child’s health and development (“Colina”). It also shows a lot of things that most people would not consider being appropriate for children. Another problem that arises when children spend this much time in front of a television is that they don’t do as well in school. If children are spending too much time in front of the television, then they are risking serious health problems. The major one that comes to mind is obesity. A recent study found that eleven percent of children between the ages of six and seventeen are obese. This is more than twice the amount of children that were obese in the 1960’s (“Television”).What is so different between the children of today and the children of the ‘60s? The amount of time watching television is the main problem; it means that for the amount of time they are watching television, they are inactive. There is almost nothing that uses less energy than watching television. Another reason children who watch a lot of television tend to gain more weight is that they are constantly watching commercials for unhealthy foods such as potato chips and soft drinks. According to the American Association of Pediatricians (AAP), children in the United States see almost forty thousand commercials each year (‘How TV Affects Your Child). A study done by the UCLA School of Public Health says that by the time a child reaches the age of five, he has seen an average of more than four thousand commercials for food every year (“Television”). Obesity in children also causes heart problems and
Cited: “Television and Health” Csun.edu., 2008. Web. 26 October 2011. “How TV Affects Your Child” Kidshealth.org.,2011. Web. 26 October 2011. “It’s not the Amount of TV, It’s the Number of Junk Food Commercials” Colina.com., Web. 26 October 2011.