Excessive viewing at the age of 2 leads to health problems and puberty performance.
This was found in a study by the School of Psychoeducation at the Université de Montréal, which warns that over-viewing of children at the age of 2 can lead to poor eating habits in teenage years and poor performance in school.
Researchers closely watched nearly 2,000 girls and boys from Quebec who were born between spring 1997 and 1998. When the children reached the age of two, parents reported their children's daily TV viewing habits. When they reached the age of 13, the children themselves reported their daily TV viewing and eating habits.
Watching television programs is mentally and physically sedentary, because it does not require a sustained effort. When young children watch too much television that encourages them to sit down, and when they learn at a very early age to prefer recreational activities that do not require a lot of effort, it is very likely that they will not prefer activities that do not have fun, to do with school when they are older.
According to the researchers, every hour of viewing at the age of 2 corresponds to an increase of 8% in bad eating habits at the age of 13. After all, the more children watched the TV, the worse they ate. Teens who were "stuck" on television when young children reported eating more fried potatoes, cold cuts, white bread, soft drinks, drinks with additional fruit flavors, energy drinks, and salty or sweet snacks compared to children who did not see much TV. Also, each more viewing time was associated with a higher body mass index, less physical activity at school during the first year of secondary education and less morning consumption in school days.
The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends that audiences of children aged 2 to 5 are limited to one hour a day and to high quality programs. Canadian researchers looked at their findings in relation to this guideline, and found that compared to children who watched TV less than an hour a day at the age of 2, children who watched TV from 1 to 4 hours a day later , at the age of 13 reported that they had less healthy eating habits and a higher body mass index.
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