One article in a special issue of the journal Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine finds that toddlers who watch more than two hours of TV a day are more likely to be overweight at ages three and four and a half.
Another found that the more TV that primary school children watched, the more frequently they asked their parents for the food, beverages and toys they saw advertised.
Source: New Scientist, 4 April 2006
Articles in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, April 2006
When Children Eat What They Watch
Television Exposure and Overweight Risk in Preschoolers
Does Children’s Screen Time Predict Requests for Advertised Products?
Studies Link Media to Modern Ills
Campaign for a Commercial Free Childhood summarise the above research, commenting on it and giving advice for parents. They say the nation’s mass media is a public health issue that urgently needs to be addressed.
Read more: CCFC, 5 April 2006