But WHY Is There A Correlation Between TV and Obesity?

I read an article the other day about a study that found (again) a correlation between TV watching and obesity in kindergartners and first graders. According to the article, the study found that these young children who watched more than two hours of TV a day had a much higher risk of being overweight or obese than children who watched less than one hour. But children who watched between one and two hours also had increased risk of obesity, even though the AAP suggests a maximum of two hours of TV per day for that age group. The takeaway here is, more than one hour of TV a day in 5 and 6-year-olds correlates to a greatly increased rate of obesity.

A simple response, then, is, "Kids shouldn't watch TV." But it isn't that simple.

Two things stick out for me.

1) This is a correlation, not a causation. They did not say that watching TV causes obesity. They even stressed that in the article. We see a correlation, but we don't know why. Why does watching more than an hour of TV seem to correlate to higher obesity rates? They also found that using a computer more than an hour a day did not have the same correlation to obesity, so it isn't the use of a screen, or the sitting and staring, that's a problem. It's the TV, specifically.

2) Didn't we already sort of know this? I mean, researchers have been studying TV watching for decades, and every so often they come out with another study that says, basically, "Kids are watching too much TV and it's making them fat." But they still don't know why. They used to think it was simply because TV was replacing physical activity, but that doesn't seem to be the case, exactly (see above).

Another article reported one older theory as to the reason TV watching correlates to obesity: It's the commercials. Kids are exposed to commercials that make them crave unhealthy food, and that contributes to weight gain. This is an interesting theory. To me, it makes sense, then, to study what kind of TV kids are watching, and how. With Netflix and other streaming services enjoying such high popularity these days, lots of kids are avoiding commercials. My kids rarely see commercials because they watch their shows on Netflix and Amazon Prime. So if there were a study that took two groups of kids, one that watches more than two hours of TV per day but exclusively on an internet streaming service, and one that watches more "traditional" network TV and are exposed to commercials, would we see a difference in obesity rates?

I'd like to offer a few other questions that should be asked.

- Are the kids who are sitting and watching TV more likely to be snacking while they watch?

If so, what are they snacking on? Perhaps kids using computers and iPads are not eating, because their parents don't want sticky fingers on the electronics. In this case, there should be a difference between TV-watching and other screen use, but there should not be a difference in Netflix versus network TV.

- Why are these kids watching so much TV?

Maybe the TV-watching and the weight concerns share the same underlying cause, rather than the TV directly causing the obesity. The L.A. Times article linked above said that the researchers controlled for variables such as socioeconomic status and demographics (which were the first variables my own mind jumped to for a possible explanation), but I'd posit that, for example, kids at home in the afternoon watching TV and snacking can cross demographic and socioeconomic lines, so there may be more that can be investigated here. My kids usually get up in the morning and watch some TV while my husband and I get ready. After school, I'm often working or getting dinner together and whatnot, so my kids, again, are watching TV while I do that. I'm lucky enough to live in a neighborhood where I can send my older two outside on their bikes to play most of the time, but there are plenty of kids in all demographics who don't have that luxury. Learning more about the environment these children spend so much of their time in would be helpful.

- What's the difference between using computers and playing video games and watching TV?

Why is computer use not correlated with obesity but TV is? Is it because the child's brain is more actively engaged when playing a video game than when he's sitting passively and watching TV? What is the fundamental difference, here? I watch my 6-year-old play video games and he's jumping up and down and shouting and generally enjoying a full-body experience while he plays. That same 6-year-old will then sprawl on the couch like a lump while watching Ninjago or My Little Pony. There's a clear difference in physical engagement with the media. I feel strongly that this issue requires more study.

My kids watch a lot of TV, so this data concerns me. My kids also play video games and use the computer, so it's not just hours of TV every day, but they do watch a lot of straight-up TV. I know why and how they've ended up watching so much TV, and the ball is squarely in my court to make the change, if a change is needed. Now, while my oldest admittedly is struggling with his weight, my other three are of average weight for their height and age, and I don't think the reason for my oldest's being overweight is that he watches TV. Frankly, my younger three have watched more TV at a younger age than he did. Now, an anecdote is not data, and my family by itself is not statistically significant, but the results of these studies may still affect my parenting. As a parent who likes data and science and evidence-based philosophies, I really want to know more about this phenomenon so that I can make an informed decision about my children's screen use. If I am given a compelling reason as to why there is this correlation between weight and hours of TV, then I can decide if I need to cut way back on the screen use or if there are other factors I can control that will mitigate the effect of the TV itself.

I watched a lot of TV as a child. Even in the 1980s, researchers and doctors were becoming concerned with the strong association between hours in the front of the TV and weight. I was far from an overweight child despite my television watching habits. But there are many more options out there now than when I was a kid, and there are other screen-time possibilities besides simply switching on the tube and watching what's on. There are other ways to watch TV, such as on a tablet, computer, or phone. There are premium and subscription services. There are tablet games and phone games and PlayStations and XBoxes. "Screen time" doesn't just mean TV time anymore, and it's very important to sort out what's the most harmful and why and to figure out what, if anything, can be done to help improve the situation.

Sure, it's easy to say, "Watch less TV." But sometimes that's not as easy as it sounds.

"Summer Camp" at Home

As you probably know, I'm a work-at/from-home mom (WAHM). This means my days are filled with a combination of childcare, school and activity schedules, and my own paid work (and my blogging and videos, of course!). With school out, I was worried that the kids would end up spending eight hours a day watching TV and playing with their tablets - neither healthy nor desirable. When they're on screens, I find, they're generally lazier: plates and garbage hang around in the living room, they stay in their pajamas until lunch time, the house somehow ends up being messier and dirtier than usual even though they haven't done anything. On top of that, they tend to be more rude to me and to each other and are less inclined to help me or each other out with things. The reason I lean heavily on screens, though, is it does keep them busy without me so I can work. It's a difficult trade-off.

So, I knew I needed to come up with a plan for the summer that allowed for screens and relaxation, without going overboard, but also allowed for me to work. Sending them to camp for any length of time is not financially feasible, and since I am at home, we don't need paid childcare, it seemed the most reasonable thing to do was to turn the house into a mini-summer camp for them.

The main take-away I had from perusing preschool calendars and summer camp schedules is themes. Either by day or by week, there are activities that are specific to certain days. Rather than just being open-ended, the days are structured in a way that gives some direction to what they should be doing today and what they can look forward to tomorrow.

The flip side of that is knowing that (a) I am not a camp director and do not want to be needed for entertainment all day long (they should be able to occupy themselves for the most part), and (b) I'm not that good at setting up and taking down activities and I don't like big messes that have to be cleaned up. So I had to find a middle ground of sorts.

I spent some time coming up with a weekly schedule that incorporated screen time under clear limits along with some new and different but self-directed activities. Then I played around in Excel to make this calendar:

(click to see full size)

If you can't see the picture, basically Mondays are art-themed, so I'll have art supplies available that aren't normally out. I'll put down a plastic tablecloth on the floor so they can do watercolors and Play-Doh without making a big mess all over the house. Tuesdays is "unlimited screens," except for mid-day when we can go out and get lunch, run errands, and so forth. It's important to break up the day somehow for me as much as for them. Wednesdays is for outdoor play. If I can't make them go outside every day, at least one day a week they'll have to go out, and they'll have some special toys to play with only on Wednesdays. Thursdays are "spread out and build." We'll move the couches and give them space to build train tracks and Lego and such. And then Friday is chores. They'll clean up from the week, help me with laundry and dishes, and as long as they get their assigned tasks done, I'll allow screens otherwise.

The idea is that each day has a theme, but you can also choose to do something else that day, and I've made some suggestions so they're not flailing around randomly. But I'm also not going to run structured games or schedule activities, so I'll give them ideas and leave them to it. Rather than trying to regulate screen time by the amount of time they spend on screens (because there's three people doing three different screen-y things at any given moment), I'm scheduling the times they must be off screens. I simply made a general rule that screens are not allowed from 9:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. except on Tuesdays (unlimited screen day). The reason for this is that they can get up in the morning, turn on the TV, relax themselves into the day, and leave me and my husband alone so we can get up and ready. Then the screens go off approximately after breakfast and they have other activities to choose from, both general activities that are available all the time and specific activities that we'll take out once a week so they stay novel. Then in the afternoon, they can start winding down again, watch TV while I get dinner ready, and so on. 

A secondary goal is to have them learn how to entertain themselves without needing screens all the time!

Figuring that summer camp and/or paid childcare would cost something like $200-300 per week, per child, I decided that spending a couple hundred dollars once to get them some new toys and activities for the summer was both reasonable and justified. I can tell them to go outside and play, but if they don't have even a ball to toss around, it's not really fair of me to say, "Go entertain yourselves." 

So we went to Target and explored the toys section and the outdoor activities section and picked out some neat stuff. We got Play-Doh and markers and watercolors and paper and a Spirograph for Art Day. We got a jump rope and a baseball mitt and ball and sidewalk chalk and bubbles and water guns for Outdoor Play Day. I got them a new Lego set for Spread Out And Build Day (they already have tons of building stuff). 

So far, they've made kind of a muddle of it, wanting to try out all their new toys and activities. But I'm keeping some things aside so they'll actually be interesting when the themed day arrives. If they've been doing Play-Doh every day, then Monday won't be special. If they play with water guns every day, then Wednesday won't be special. 

At least, that's the idea.

I'll update later in the summer about how well this is working. It's been up and down so far, but I like having a plan so that I can keep coming back to, "Today is outside day. Go outside and play" or whatever, rather than being arbitrary about what they should be doing.

TV and Movies

I admit it. My kids watch TV. More than we really meant for them to.

When our older son was a baby, we were "against" TV as a baby-sitter, in that we didn't see a reason for a small child to be watching TV, and we really didn't think a baby should be propped in front of a television in lieu of playing with toys or being interacted-with by adult caregivers. When he was a baby, the TV was on a lot in our house, but it was our shows, and then when he was a toddler, we'd watch TV when he was sleeping. I didn't (and still don't, really) believe in using Baby Einstein or any of that. I think babies learn way more from hanging around with their parents than being sat in front of a TV screen, regardless of what that screen is showing.

I'm aware of the research out there that says kids under two shouldn't watch TV at all, and preschoolers shouldn't watch more than an hour, and so on. There are all sorts of theories about how TV is causing autism, or ADHD, or G-d knows what else. And it's entirely possible that exposure to the TV screen is in some way bad for the brain or eyes or something. It wouldn't surprise me if they found something definitive.

My bigger concern is how TV is becoming a crutch for me. We'll put on a 30-minute show in the morning for the kids to watch while my husband makes breakfast and I shower and get dressed. Keeps them occupied. I'll let my younger son watch a "moo-wee" so I can get work done. He knows how to open the DVD player and turn on the TV, how to handle a DVD properly, take it out of the box, put it back in its box, and put it in the DVD player. He doesn't know how to switch the TV to the proper input channel or to start the DVD, but I'm sure he'll work that one out eventually. Then, when his brother comes home from school, I sometimes let them watch some more TV, say a 30-minute show or two, so that I can get a little more work done, or cook dinner, or something, while they wind down. Many days, I refuse to let them, and if they don't ask, I don't suggest it unless they've already been playing well for a long time and I want them to start calming down.

What's nice about my kids is that they do self-police what they watch. My older son is, pardon my brutal honesty, a wuss. We've tried to have him watch age-appropriate movies other than "Toy Story" and "Cars," and most of them have him whimpering in fear during mildly scary sequences. My husband and I don't really get it, and we're never sure what will scare him or give him nightmares. My younger son is more open to watching new movies, but he hasn't reached the point of anticipating what will happen or being afraid of something bad happening. It's possible that when he's 4-1/2, he'll be a "wuss," too. He's already been exposed to far more TV and movies than his brother had been by this age, though, by virtue of, well, having an older brother!

So how do we choose and police what we allow them to watch? Well, first of all, thank G-d for the DVR. My sons don't even understand that there was a time when you couldn't just choose what to watch, whenever you wanted to watch it. We picked out mild shows from PBS and Nick, Jr. that we felt were inoffensive, fairly calm, had some educational value, and didn't annoy us too much. Since they choose from what's been recorded, we have total control! (I know that won't last, but we'll enjoy it for now.)

My kids' favorite shows are, now, "Calliou," "Curious George," "Thomas the Tank Engine," "Sesame Street," "Sid The Science Kid," and "Martha Speaks." I'm not sure why they like the shows they do, but I don't particularly mind any of these. I don't feel like the kids are learning anything they shouldn't, and sometimes a lesson gets through.

As far as movies, we mostly stick to Disney/Pixar. We've found, in trying other studios' fare that it's less truly kid-friendly. At least, not little-kid friendly. They like "Shrek," though. They definitely prefer animated to live-action, cartoon drawing to CGI, except they love all three "Toy Story" movies and "Cars." In fact, we've decided that our older son's first theater movie will be "Cars 2" in a couple weeks. Lucky guy!

I guess as they get older they'll start watching more "mature" stuff, but hopefully not for a while. I never understand how parents can let their young kids watch things like horror films or thrillers or action movies. My husband and I saw "X-Men First Class" last weekend (good movie!), and there was a family there with fairly young kids. That movie has some very disturbing imagery. I wouldn't take my kids anywhere near that stuff for years yet. I mean, if "Wallace and Gromit," which says right on it that it's intended for ages 5 to 7 years, gave my son nightmares, who knows what Holocaust imagery would do to him. I don't see any reason to find out!

I don't know how you know when a kid is old enough for a particular show or movie. I know that my brother, at four-ish, was afraid of "Star Trek: The Next Generation," while I, at seven-ish, loved it. So maybe seven is a magic cut-off age? I suppose if you know your kid, you know what he can handle. It's just, there are movies and books I really look forward to sharing with my kids, like "The Princess Bride," that I know we need to hold off on for years yet. I first saw "The Princess Bride" when I was about eight, and it scared me! I still remember that, despite how much I adore that movie now.

I also don't care for them to see shows or movies that will bring up questions I'm not ready to answer. I'll never forget watching some sitcom with my mom - I don't remember which - in which the word "orgasm" came up. Naturally, I asked her what it meant. I don't think she enjoyed answering. I don't remember how old I was, but probably not quite old enough to need to know what an orgasm is. I was pretty sheltered, TV-wise, as a kid. I watched "Mister Rogers" and "Square One" after school, and that was good enough for me for a long time. To give you a sense of my "shelteredness," I was about 9 when "Terminator 2" came out. Some of my friends went to see it. I was horrified that someone my age would see an R-rated movie! I remember saying, "I don't watch R-rated movies!" I think I saw my first R-rated movie when I was about 13. I remember being haunted by the violence of "The Last of the Mohicans" for years, and being shocked when we were treated to Olivia Hussey's breasts in the 1968 Zeferelli version of "Romeo and Juliet," which we watched (with parental permission) in ninth grade. I'm happy enough for my kids to be equally sheltered.

For now, while we still have control, I won't worry too much about what TV my kids are exposed to. Soon enough, they'll be going to friends' houses and probably watching TV there. They'll be able to turn on the TV and channel surf on their own (although right now we don't have cable, so there won't be much to see!). They'll want to go see movies in the theater with friends instead of parents. My main hope is that they also will do their homework and read books, because while I don't think TV is evil or to be completely avoided, I also think it definitely gets in the way of other valuable pursuits.

And who knows? Maybe they'll figure out that TV really does rot the brain, and we'll all turn our TVs in for healthy organic snacks and, um... haha! Just joking!