Watching TV is bad for you. What do you think?

Personally I think it is just another ploy to get television banned or something. When I was younger I watched television for hours on end and don't have any attention problems. My husband was a 70's baby and he watched loads of television too and he has no attention problems either. ADHD is a serious problem, but it isn't caused by watching an over abundance of television. My cousin has ADHD, he's never watched television for more than a few minutes a day. So parent's and "scientists" need to figure out something else to blame their child's problems on.

There have been studies that 'prove' television is bad, and just as many studies that 'prove' television is good for kids. I think it depends so much on what type of television the kids are watching. I believe educational shows can be beneficial, but just staring at mindless entertainment for hours and hours can be harmful. As parents, I think we have a responsibility to see that our kids have a lot of different experiences, and television can be a positive part of that.

I fully agree to My Children where not big TV Watchers as I would not let them I preferred them in the fresh Air also they used to play more with their toys Their Favorites was lego's lol I agree that Parents should be taken their Children out more but it is not the case anymore and that is why also they have not got the Relationship with their Children that they should have

I think that watching TV is bad for you. I'm not sure whether it causes ADHD but I know that if I'm watching TV it draws me in and away from real life, and I start being addicted and want to watch it more and more. I only use my TV so the kids can watch videos and DVD's and only a few times a week. They can watch unlimited TV when they visit their dad so that is more than enough for them.

I really don't think children watching so much TV may be a contributing factor of ADHD although it certainly doesn't help...I actually did an article and it's suspected that many of the childhood vaccines that have been administered may be a factor for many childhood problems such as ADHD due to the fact that the vaccines had mercury in them...yup, mercury..but I digress I had a lot of major problems with my mother in my later years but I do have to give her credit...she did expose me to a vast array of interests..taking me to the ballet, the opera, the museums, walks in the park, zoos...how many parents do that nowadays? The problem of course, too, is that nowadays in many cases, both parents do work and don't have the time to spend, unfortunately to expose kids to so many interests like I was...It seems so much easier just to "plop" the kid in front of the TV --or computer..for hours on end. There's no real interaction with the "real" world, no real communication, so is it any wonder maybe children get introverted and demonstrate behavior problems? I don't have children (well except my two fur babies..LOL) but if I did, I would do the same as my mom did and take them "out in the world" and explore all that life has to offer. By the way, I didn't watch much TV as a kid, and as an adult, still don't watch TV...if I do, it's usually before bed, and usually one of my DVD movies that I watch a bit...Like you I have so many other things to occupy my time, and I find spending it in front of the TV a precious waste of time

I don't think watching TV is bad for you or your children. In these days, a 5 year old child knows more than a 30 year old man. Its because it uses TV and/or Internet to bigger its knowlege. 30 years ago, when there was no TV or it wasn't hardly in our lives, if 15 year old kid makes something big (like making money, making business, having computing skills!), it would be a big story, but in todays life, when Internet and TV is in every normal home, there are a lot of cases in which kids below 15 years make more money in a month, than his father would do in a year. Perfect example is the "Make Money Online with 13-year old" blog at http://www.carlocab.com, which can give you more making money and blogging tips than I can (I'm 16 years old BTW, it's not a big difference). So my final oppinion is that without TV and Internet our world would be like in stone age, but watching too much TV or staying too much in front of the PC is bad for the little kids. PS: Excuse my English, I'm Bulgarian.

Tv barely has a redeeming quality anymore, which is such a huge reflection on our culture.It abuses the senses with 4,000_ violent images per day of watching.The internet can at least teach and communicate worldwide, which is pretty amazing.I hope tv can once again find a decent rapport and find some level of old time productivity.

I love the way everything has to have a 'label' nowadays so that bad behaviour can be made to be a 'medical condition' and therefore excuse the parents for bringing the child up badly. 'Nothing to do with me, Headmaster, my child has ADHD' Where is this so-called ADHD in other parts of the world where the children have to help with household or farm chores from an early age? Please. Just do everything in moderation and all will be fine for a balanced up-bringing. A bit of TV; a bit of computer games; a bit of mobile phones; a bit of pop music; a few movies; a bit of homework; walk the dog; cook a meal; sweep the drive; and so on and on. Why can't the young of today be perfect like I was? haha

well since there was only one TV in our house and not much on for kids back then (except for Sat morn cartoons) i can't say that I got to watch that much TV either- besides if I did sit and watch tv a lot my mother would send me outside to play. I don't think watching a lot of tv is bad so long as your child has taken care of their home work and had some outdoor activity that day...I mean some kids don't even get exercise they just sit in front of the TV all the time...now that is wrong, the parent needs to get more involved and maybe go with the child on a bike ride or something- make it fun for them.

I agree. I think that TV might not be bad if it is carefully supervised, watching age appropriate programs, movies without interruptions (commercials) and documentories. I personally watch more on the History, Discovery channels than on entertainment channels, tho I do enjoy some programs like Doctor Who since I am a science fiction fan. I do know that IF I had a child, there would be no TV in their room - I have none in my bedroom, I can't even sleep if there's one just playing music in my room.

I do believe that too much tv viewing, is not too good for people. There are lots of other things that they could be doing, and get some exercize. I never really watched tv that much when I was a kid. Mainly, because my mom and dad chose the majority of the tv shows, and I wasn't that interested in what they watched. There were a few shows that I was allowed to watch, thank goodness, The Partridge Family and Brady Bunch. They were my favorites.

Hi rosie, good discussion. I think it may depend on what children are watching, but certainly they need to get outside and do things that develop their imagination. When my children were growing up, I didn't discourage TV, only monitored what they watched. I also encouraged them to read, and of course there had to be some outside activities and playing with friends. Taking an interest is the key, and usually leads to a healthy diet for the mind. Blessings my friend.

I do feel some parents make the TV a babysitter (sometimes a part or full time parent depending on the situation -_-). Parents should make an effort to get their kids into hobbies or get them active and not have them watch so much TV. Personally, I can go without TV on days too, especially during the weekend.

Yes. You are right. I have read a great book about this subject and this is the true: if anyone (especialy children) is watching too much on TV, this affect (on long term) the brain. Also can create ADHD sindrom, how you already mention, and make the child to think less, to become agitated and irritated all the time. People shouldn't forgot the real life, the real games, the walks, the friends, the nature. This is a big problem for the new generation.

Well, I do agree that watching TV can be harmful for any agegroup, but I don't you can mention any specific duration. It depends on person to person. I personally watch TV for more than 5 hours a day and would still be fine. I have seen cases in which watching Tv for even half an hour affects somebody.

But what do you feel about it? Well first I want to stress that ADD/ADHD is not caused by TV, but may not help it. This study seemed to in a way point fingers at too much TV could be the cause and that simply is not the truth by no means. This condition is caused by an imbalance in the brain, chemical or functioning, but by no means from something like TV. However too much TV is never a benefit and I am sure clearly not for a child with this condition. Do you agree, or disagree with the results of this survey. I think too much TV is bad, for the body as well as the mind. I think letting children watch too much of it is not good and does not encourage healthier habits nor life styles. How much TV do you let your children watch, and how much do you watch yourself? All off us watch at most 3 hours of TV though out the day. Mostly it's about 2 hours unless a show that comes on once a week is on. We like to do other things that involves family time and physical movement. If nothing else can be done, going in the back yard to toss a ball will do, LOL.

i consider myself a 70's child... and i watch TV a lot!.. dun think i suffered ADHD, in fact i'm quite focussed and attentive, to a lot things... when i was class, to listening to people.. all that - i consider myself an above-average student when i was young. i let my children watch tv a lot, too... i guess. it may have the negative effects - bad eyesight + bad programes (that they might watch, without me knowing) that effect their attitude,... but i always look to positive side of it - i learnt a lot watching tv - ENGLISH is one of it - my native language is NOT English. There a lot of good, educational programmes which you have to learn to pick for your children's 'watch-list'.

The article says this study is independent of whether or not the person was diagnosed before adolescence. Some of these people, very likely, had ADD or ADHD as young children and this was not considered in the final results. I had the television on all the time when my kids were growing up, because I liked the background noise. Maybe I liked to imagine that there were other adults around me! None of my five children has been diagnosed with either of these conditions.

i have read that survey before,and i believe it also,watching TV too much is bad for our health particular for chidren.when i was a child,i watched TV everyday and for over 3 hours,and now i really feel myself dull sometime,and in my childhood i got a shortsightedness.so i agree parents don't put their child in front of the TV,and watch TV over 2 hours.for me i only watch Tv for news and less than a hour a day.

Yes,I think so.But now everything has hazards people's health.Children are very small,hazards for them are very import.