TV Linked to Attention Deficit
As the mother of twins who relied heavily on “video time” in order to get anything accomplished around the house when the kids were little, I’d like to challenge this study that says:
A study from the American Academy of Pediatrics shows that watching videos as a toddler may lead to Attention Deficit Hyperactivity Disorder (ADHD, also called ADD in UK) in later life.
TV watching “rewires” an infant’s brain, says Dr. Dimitri A. Christakis lead researcher and director of the Child Health Institute at Children’s Hospital and Regional Medical Center, Seattle, Wash. The damage shows up at age 7 when children have difficulty paying attention in school. Full article…
Now, considering that I can personally present my own case study, offering up TWO children, the same age, who shared the exact same daily routines, habits and schedules for the last 13 years – I’m going to say I do not agree with this study one bit!
Wanna know why?
I have one child that does very well in school while the other struggles a bit more.
Now, I’ve been told that it’s because of the “twin” thing, where one is aggressive while the other is passive, which I could see more easily than the fact they watched learning videos when they were younger.
I believe the one who struggles in school does so because the aggressive twin would always become impatient with his brother and take over doing whatever task was at hand – thus resulting in the passive twin becoming lazy.
As for the learning videos and PBS – If these doctors were at home tending to their children all day instead of hanging out in an office reading the results of studies while quietly sipping their decaf latte’ - opinions and studies might reveal something totally different.
There’s my argument – now it’s your turn!
Thanks to Angela at Oh Baby Baby for pointing this study out.
If that study was true, I would have 3 very ADD kids! But I don’t. I have 3 kids who do well in school, are well behaved and have no trouble focusing (except when I need them to do chores).
My 15 year old high school sophomore is an honors student. When she was in the 7th grade she was invited to take the SAT test. When she was little she LOVED watching Barney. To this day I sing the “I Love You” song with my 2 year old and my 11 month old. The two year old LOVES her morning shows and she’s a smart one to boot! No, I don’t think we will be banning PBS any time soon…
http://lifesalad.blogspot.com/2006/11/blog-carnival-super-nanny-rules-blog.html
My oldest is 5, so we will see, hope this study is not true!
If children develop ADD/ADHD from watching too much television, I hope that they’re at least watching SUPERNANNY!
I seriously would like to spotlight a family next season with an ADD/ADHD child in the mix.
1-877-NANNYTIME
http://www.abc.com / keyword SUPERNANNY
CASTING DEPARTMENT (323)904-4680
Andy Hirsch
Casting Producer
SUPERNANNY
I would love to see how Jo would combat ADHD head on. One of my twins is currently going through testing to determine if he is LD or ADHD.
As a parent, I’ve always carried this guilt around that his dad (we divorced a LONG time ago) shook him to hard once or that it has something to do with him having seizures related to fevers when he was little.
It’s as much for his benefit as it is for my peace of mind. But whatever it is, it’s a painful challenge for any parent to have to go through. Especially when there is such a huge difference between TWINS.
As the author of the aforementioned study, I would only ask that you read it, and my work, to learn that I am NOT anti TV. In fact, my basic premise, as outlined in my recent book, is that TV be used as a tool. It need not be bad for children. True, it can be dangerous, but if used appropriately, it can produce wonderful things.
See http://www.maketvwork.com
cheers
d
Mr. Christakis ~
Tell that to my husband who has completely re-arranged MY routine with OUR children because of your article. Perhaps it would be a good idea to edit what you’ve written to include that small amounts of television and videos is not harmful.
Dr. Christakis – thanks so much for taking the time to post your personal comments. I’ll be sure to take the time to read your study completely and would like to encourage everyone reading here to do the same.
By the same token, just like my friend Angela who has two little ones at home and is a 24/7 parent while her husband travels, it’s causing chaos in at least one household, so I’m sure there are plenty more we’re not aware of.
I’ll keep everyone posted of my own opinions and hope everyone else will do the same.
Thanks again