TV & Children:
Television, Health and Development

How does television affect the health of our children?
Children from birth to age five are actively growing, learning and developing habits that will shape their physical and emotional health. Because this time period is so crucial to the development of a child’s body and brain, any negative influences can have lifelong health effects (1). Excessive television viewing among young children has been linked to negative impacts on early brain development, and lifelong physical health (1, 2).
Television and early brain development
Repeated exposure to television or related activity can affect a child’s mental and emotional development (1). TV often takes the place of interactive experiences
(e.g play) that promote healthy brain development (1, 2, 3, 4).
Too much TV during the early years has been linked to: o Poor performance in school, especially in the areas of language and reading. If TV is substituted for reading and talking with others at a young age, children may have delayed language development (1, 2, 3, 5,
26).
o Being less able to use imagination. Too much TV can lead to an overload on the visual part of the brain, while depriving other parts of the brain. Areas of the brain responsible for creative thought and imagination are under used because watching television doesn’t require these skills (2). o Not being able to tell apart television from the real world. (3). o Problems focusing. Too many fast paced images from TV watching keeps the brain from learning how to pay attention and also the instant stimulus of TV can cause a children to become impatient in complex situations (1). o Poor skills in planning and judging. The areas of the brain responsible for these skills are under used and not fully developed if a young child watches too much television and plays too many video games