Turn Off The TV

Monday, April 19, 2010
by Jeannie Fleming-Gifford

Happy Turn off the TV Week: April 19-25, 2010 (www.tvturnoff.org/index.php). Are you "celebrating?"

I enjoy a little TV. There's this hilarious weather guy that I like to tune into and, recently, I've found this new show, "Parenthood" (NBC, Tues. nights, 10pm). Mama to mama, what are you watching these days?

With the munchkin, I've tried to be careful when it comes to TV viewing. Let's face it, there's a lot of garbage out there. And (yes, I've said it before, and I'll say it again), the American Academy of Pediatrics recommends NO (nada, zilch, zero) TV viewing for children under the age of two. But...I'll admit it. She saw Dora before the age of two, and may have seen some "Clifford" too. There IS some good (entertaining, and sometimes - I dare say - "educational") stuff out there. If you've been reading this blog, you've probably figured out that I try to be an "everything in moderation mama."  I think the DVR is one of the best inventions ever and it allows me to carefully screen what the kiddo does (and doesn't - like commercials - the worst!) see.

When I caught wind of the "Turn Off the TV Week" campaign (championed by the folks from the Center for Screentime Awareness - www.screentime.org/), I thought it to be a pretty cool idea. So, I'm celebrating and going to see if I can get a shower (www.planningfamily.com/blog/a-developmentally-appropriate-shower/ ) and get through the daily routine without the assistance of a "Dora" episode.

It's a pretty important subject and I've written about it before: www.planningfamily.com/blog/the-boob-tube/, but it is so important, that here I am again.

Here's a few facts and figures (see complete information here: www.screentime.org/index.php). After reading this, you and your family may want join the celebration this week too! Let me know how it goes and what you do INSTEAD. Enjoy.

TV Viewing & Young Children:

Children six and under spend an average of two hours a day using screen media, about the same amount of time they spend playing outside, and well over the amount they spend reading or being read to (39 minutes).--Zero to Six: Electronic Media in the Lives of Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers, Kaiser Family Foundation and the Children's Digital Media Centers, 2003.

Children in households where the TV is on "always" or "most of the time" are less likely to read than are children in other homes. Zero to Six: Electronic Media in the Lives of Infants, Toddlers and Preschoolers, Kaiser Family Foundation and the Children's Digital Media Centers, 2003.

Research now indicates that for every hour of television children watch each day, their risk of developing attention-related problems later increases by ten percent.  For example, if a child watches three hours of television each day, the child would be thirty percent more likely to develop attention deficit disorder.--D. Christakis, Pediatrics, April 2004.

 

 

Comments

Add a Comment

* Title	RE: Turn Off The TV
Name
* Comment

Submit