Is Watching TV Bad for Children?

 

Written by Jenny Caton

 

Some experts have suggested that children under the age of 12 should watch no more than one hour of television each day. But for many parents, trying to tear children away from the TV can be an on-going battle. But is watching television really bad for children?

 

Yes – Elizabeth

I’m shocked at the amount of violence, sex and bad language that is shown on television every day. Once upon a time it was restricted to after the watershed so you could protect children from it but now it seems to have permeated through the entire television schedule. Soap operas routinely show violent behaviour and supposedly ‘family entertainment’ shows often feature overtly sexual dance routines. It isn’t healthy for children to be exposed to this from a young age as it teaches them that this is what real life is like, when it’s not.

As well as teaching children poor moral values, too much time spent in front of the television means children have no time for other activities such as exercising, studying or playing outdoors with their friends.

Studies have also shown that children who watch too much television can develop attention-deficit disorders. After the fast, energetic pace of TV shows, children often find it difficult to concentrate on more mundane activities, like schoolwork, for any length of time.

In our household, we only switch the television on when there is a programme that we particularly want to watch. This avoids the temptation to sit in front of it hour after hour and means that we socialise as a family instead. When my children do watch TV, I make sure it’s only for short periods of time and always check that the programme is suitable for their age.

 

 

No – Patrick

Television is a great educational resource for children. There are so many programmes that teach children about everything from history and geography to art and religion. They can learn about countries they have never visited and see how people live in different societies and cultures.

Television is also a great way to introduce children to different hobbies and can inspire them to have ambition in other areas of their lives. For example, at a young age I decided I wanted to be a chemist after watching science programmes on TV and my youngest daughter has started singing lessons after watching television talent shows. There may be programmes that promote violence but there are just as many that set a good example to children, encouraging them to work hard and succeed in life.

I’ve always believed that television prepares children for the real world too. It’s much better that they learn about things like bullying or drugs by watching television than by experiencing it in the real world without any knowledge of how to deal with difficult situations. If a character in a soap opera does something like stealing, parents can use it as a way to explain to children why this behaviour is wrong.

Like many things that get a bad rap in life, television in itself isn’t harmful, particularly if parents watch television with their kids. Restricting or banning television completely isn’t the answer.

Categories: caton, Children, children nbsp, jenny, nbsp, real world, Television, time, watch, watching television, written, young age

Effortless Weight Loss: How to Burn a Few More Calories

While there’s no substitute for diet and exercise, there are weird ways you can take care of your wellbeing and lose weight that actually work. Whether it’s checking your emails or sitting in the dark, these weird and wonderful habits can set you on your way to weight loss wellness.

 

1. Take a multivitamin: In a study of 96 obese women, which was published in the International Journal of Obesity, participants either received a multivitamin, calcium supplement, or placebo for 26 weeks, and those in the former group lost significantly more body fat than the others. Louis J. Aronne, director of the Comprehensive Weight Control Program at New York-Presbyterian Hospital/Weill Cornell Medical Center in New York City, comments, ‘It’s possible that some people eat more because they’re seeking out certain nutrients,’ so even though the vitamin itself won’t make you lose weight, doing so might reduce your need to consume as much food.

 

2. Watch where you sit: Although a few post-work cocktails or a nice dinner out with your partner can be just what the doctor ordered, essentially you’re just making yourself an easy target for overeating. However, psychologist Stephen Gullo, author of The Thin Commandments Diet, advises snagging a spot at the end of the table. This may feel like a bit of a conversation no man’s land, but ‘centre seats are where the bread, chips, and other sharing plates usually wind up,’ so it’s best to distance yourself where possible.

 

3. Read your email: According to a Kaiser Permanente study, people who read weekly wellness newsletters in their inboxes eat more fresh produce and fewer trans fats, and even exercise more. New York City nutritionist Joy Bauer, author of Joy Bauer’s Food Cures, who sends out her own daily tip sheet through joybauer.com, explains that nutrition email blasts are ‘crammed with clever tricks,’ as well as just putting nutrition on your mind. The more you think about your wellbeing, the more likely you are to actually do something about it.

 

4. Turn off the lights: In study of mice, researchers at Ohio State University found that sleeping in total darkness could make you thinner. Mice who slept in total darkness, as opposed to bright light or dim illumination (such as from a TV screen), were significantly less prone to obesity than mice who slept in brighter situations. Study leader Laura Fonken, a neuroscience student, notes that the mice who slept with light exposure ate at odd times, which is the equivalent of late-night eating.

 

5. Don’t feel guilty about your diet: Even if you eat an unhealthy meal, Kristin Neff, an associate professor of human development and culture at the University of Texas at Austin and the author of Self-Compassion, says it’s vital that you don’t give yourself a hard time. Getting rid of guild is essential in order to build a healthy relationship with food, but also because the stress of the guilt you’re feeling makes you more prone to overeating – what a vicious cycle!

 

6. Turn off the telly: On average, you tend to spend five hours of your day sitting in front of the television – and you say you’ve got no time for anything! This shocking statistic can help when it comes to your diet, as setting a time limit on your telly time – and doing nothing else exertion-wise – can still allow you to burn more calories. Researchers used an electronic lock-out system which forced telly addicts to watch 50% less TV, and these participants, on this lifestyle change alone, burned an average of 119 more calories per day – imagine what would happen if you replaced that reduced TV time with exercise!

Categories: diet, Emails, joy bauer, Lose weight, multivitamin, nbsp, Television, time, total darkness, weight, Weight Loss, york city

How Can Television Help You to Manage Your Diabetes?

The TV you have now is barely recognisable from the one your grandparents, or even your parents had. Over the past 50 years, televisions have become thinner, taller and wider, whilst making leaps and bounds in colour, sound and clarity. These days your TV has new problems to deal with; competing for attention with any new favourite mobile device. However, that’s all about to change with a new wellness discovery that an iPhone can’t beat.

In Australia, if your wellbeing is affected by diabetes, you will now be able to access potentially life-saving information all from the comfort of your living room. The new SeeCare IPTV platform has the ability to deliver video content to your television, making health literacy classes accessible through your television’s broadband connection. This has created a new innovative development in healthcare education.

Diabetes Australia is responsible for the information which makes up this health-related video content, and the organisation will utilize SeeCare’s Web 2.0 platform in order to connect those who have been affected by diabetes with the technologies that are available on the market. Diabetes Australia aims to achieve this goal by delivering the latest diabetes healthcare information over a broadband network using Ericsson’s IPTV system.

According to Ken Clarke, who is a senior researcher from the Institute for a Broadband Enabled Society at the University of Melbourne, ‘As we enter the Networked Society, we can expect to see virtually every device connected. So aside from smart phones, PC’s, and tablets, we will interact with many more devices, such as televisions for information, education, and healthcare.’

SeeCare, a provider of healthcare search and development of advanced social networking technology, developed the project in order to create a support-management group at home within the community it has created. When you have diabetes, this is especially important as the disease consistently requires daily self-management. Therefore, if you have a higher level of health literacy, you will have all the tools you need to properly manage your health. And since we live in an era submerged in having instant access to anything on a computer or mobile device, and now the television, surely it makes sense for healthcare providers and organisations to bring health literacy into the 21^st century.

How Can Television Help You to Manage Your Diabetes?

Categories: Diabetes, diabetes australia, Diabetes Management, health, Health Literacy, healthcare, Information, mobile device, Television, video content