Article Surfing Archive

The question about the television ADHD connection has been around for a while, and different studies seem to suggest different answers. However a recent study carried out last year on kindergartners suggests that television is not to blame for ADHD symptoms.

But before you rush off to turn on the TV there are some points worth noting.

In a previous study researchers found that children aged 1- 3 who watched television had an increased risk of attention problems by the time they reached age 7. They concluded that for each hour of TV watched a day the risk of attention problems rose by just short of 10% at age 7.

However there are a number of limitation with this study. The children taking part in the study were not formally diagnosed as having ADHD. Rather the parents were merely asked assessment questions that helped determine if the children showed similar behaviors to ADHD like inattention, impulsively and hyperactivity.

Perhaps children who have inherent attention problems are more pulled towards television and parents who have children with ADHD and other attention disorders are more willing to let their children sit in front of the TV as they seem better behaved and more focused.

Researchers have also proposed that early exposure to TV could lead to a shortened attention span. This is based on the premise that children spending hours in front of the TV are conditioned to tune into rapid moving images.

The real world isn't like this and paying attention to slower moving situations like a math class can become really difficult. The earlier the exposure, the more likely a child acquires problems with attention.

Whether this theory holds true or not, watching television for long hours at a time is still not a good activity for your child however stimulating it is considered to be.

The American Academy of Pediatrics currently recommend that children under 2 do not watch television over concerns that it effects brain development and social, emotional and cognitive abilities.

Continue reading for more tips on reducing TV time and to sign up for the free recognizing and treating ADHD newsletter.

So, although recent studies suggest that there is no correlation between kindergartner aged children and ADHD there are confirmed links that watching too much TV means a lower reading ability, as well as the risk of obesity and increased violent behavior. Therefore the following precautions may be wise:

- no TV for children under two years old
- limit older children's TV viewing to 1 ' 2 hours a day
- remove TV's from children's bedrooms

The recent study showed that the connection between television and ADHD does exist but I think the debate will rumble on for some time. As with most things in life, everything in moderation seems to be a great motto and one that applies to TV viewing as well.