Television Equals Obese Kids?

United States
January 10, 2009 3:50pm CST
In our more sedentary world, an epidemic of obese children is in full bloom. A number of factors lead to this. One fear of kidnapping keeping children away from streets, off bikes, and playgrounds. Another is many children are lured indoors by blinging gadgetry and TV's often in their TVs. * But is it just the constant play of TVs or their advertisements to children that are the culprit? Most food advertisements aimed at children are not for carrots. They are usually for sweet treats and sugary cereals. * Who the evil be? TV or Twinkie?
4 responses
@ElicBxn (63643)
• United States
11 Jan 09
I, for one, can't immagine letting a child have a TV in their room, can you tell I'm not a parent, and I grew up in an age when TVs were expensive and cable wasn't in every room? At least I grew up with a TV, the kids behind us didn't. Their parent's didn't get a TV in their house until the youngest was in college. (She's now one of my vets.)
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Jan 09
a very old AM radio -  When I was eleven, the only thing I had in my room was a very old AM radio, and Man! I loved that one speaker wonder!
I personally don't think its a good idea to have a TV or a computer in a child's room either. When I was eleven, the only thing I had in my room was a very old AM radio, and Man! I loved that one speaker wonder! * Of course, it had a lite brite next to it, and paper and crayons....oh I had a very artsy fartsy childhood...
1 person likes this
@ElicBxn (63643)
• United States
12 Jan 09
I had a record player and a radio, but no lite brite...
@davido (1623)
• Canada
11 Jan 09
Its not only TV and all these scrappy foods, internet too is part of the course. You know you can spend almost eight hours on your computer and not get up and be eating normall food on it, u get extra pounds of course so are the kids.
1 person likes this
@Haloman (122)
• United States
10 Jan 09
i don't think that that is neccessarily a fair thing to say, parents should be able to control what their kids watch and what they eat. if you only alloq your kids to watch an hour of tv a night after the homework is done and tell them for a snack they're having carrots and not a twinkie then your kids are more likely to eat carrots and watch less tv. as for the fear of kidnapping, that's what backyards are for you can have your kids out in the yard playing and be able to keep an eye on them from inside the house, plus there is nothing stopping you from going outside with your kids for a nice walk or a game of catch or something, sure it can be hard to find time to go out and do these things but in the run of a week how many of us can honestly say that there is no possible way we can fit an hour in to spend outside with our kids?? not very many the truth behind it is many of us are too lazy to spend the time outside so it's not that we don't have time to do it we just plain don't want to.. this is a problem in todays society we blame tv and electronices for our obese kids when really it's us we make the difference not the television and computer kids are far more likely to want to be outside if they know their parents are coming too.
1 person likes this
• United States
12 Jan 09
Where I lived when I was 12, back yards didn't exist. Apartments do not come with those. * Where I live now, the average place comes with two bedrooms, a front area with a kitchen/living room, a bathroom, if your lucky, a small porch which led to the stairs that you shared with the neighbors. Lots of shootings and lots of kids.
@cedric_a (12)
• Singapore
11 Jan 09
i think that television does not equate to obese kids but it does give rise to a higher chance of kids becoming obese. the answer is obvious, the kids are not exercising and working out enough outside their homes but instead plug themselves to the television set all day long. Of course, some kids find it boring to merely watch televisions hence they induldge in snacks while they watch their favourite tv shows. If this goes on for a pro long period of time, it is no wonder that these kids eventually put on substantial weight
• United States
12 Jan 09
Boredom eating, that's a good argument!