TV Might Not Be So Good For Our Kids Either Part 2

Washing hands to minimize puerperal fever.  H pylori as causative agent of peptic ulcers.  Estrogen replacement therapy as not so convincingly safe.  It's these studies & more that revolutionize our thinking and keep us on our toes.  However, medicine is more often full of "Duh!" moments.  After all, whenever studies support conventional wisdom, we slap our foreheads like the old V8 commercial and question why we had to spend time & money on something so obvious.  We've known for a while that watching television & spending time in front of a computer isn't healthy for adults.  But does all this data also apply to adolescents?

Well, in a small study published online in Pediatrics earlier this week, the authors concluded that screen time is indeed linked to body mass index in adolescents.  Cue the sound of foreheads being slapped.  The authors found 91 young teenagers 13-15yo and obtained self-reported diaries of time spent watching TV, playing video games and in front of a computer.  They also calculated BMI based upon weight & height in a typical fashion.  Interestingly, while time spent watching TV was not related to BMI, greater time spent in front of the television relative to playing video games or in front of computer was indeed linked to higher BMI.  In fact, those in the highest quartile vs lowest had 2+kg/m2 greater BMI.

So while all screen time is of concern, it would appear that we need to be even more on alert to the various (food) advertisements that are more prevalent during TV viewing as opposed to playing video games and/or sitting in front of a computer.  In other words, our teens are easily swayed by Madison Avenue ads.  Cue more forehead slapping.

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