Tuesday, February 23, 2010

thought for the day : throw out the t.v.















ok, i don't mean literally throw out your television---although, kudos if you do---assuming you don't live 5 stories above a pedestrian-heavy city block.  tv watching has come up recently a bit with fellow friends that are parents....

i have zero urge to show my 15-month-old television, and i haven't watched a show since he was 3 months old and became interested in it himself.   the up side is that it's sort of like cutting out sugar (not that i would know, but from what i've heard).....you don't miss it once it's gone.  plus, i mean, "keeping up with the kardashians"?....really?

as usual, i'm getting off point.  i remember seeing a father on the today show in the last few years talk about how he put some numbers together that showed how, since the 1970's, the rise in kids' television viewing was proportionate to the rise in autism.

done deal.  no t.v.

honestly, that type of info only helps me seal the deal.  plus, there is information from the american academy of pediatrics, who i admit are psycho when it comes to vaccination amounts, like "no television for babies under 2 years of age because the opportunities for adult-child interactions are limited."  babies need to interact with adults.

a 2007 study found that by 3 months of age, 40% of children regularly watched television, dvds, or videos----and by age 24 months, the proportion rose to 90%.  yikes!!

television viewing among infants and toddlers has been linked to irregular sleep schedules.   also, studies have shown that, "three-year-old children exposed to more tv, both directly and indirectly, are at increased risk for exhibiting aggressive behavior.

call me old fashioned, but i constantly look to how my grandparents were raised when it comes to raising my son....

above photo courtesy of nicobobinus on flickr
below photo courtesy of resourcesforlife on flickr



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