Fact sheet: Screen time and childhood obesity

Downloading obesity: Balancing screen time and healthy weight

Children spend more time in front of a computer, television, and game screens than any other activity in their lives except sleeping.

Overview

As obesity becomes more of a health problem for our children, it is important to increase the amount of time children spend being active each day. Watching television, sitting in front of computer screens or video games, keeps children sitting still for long periods of time. These inactive lifestyles also encourage unhealthy diets. Limiting screen time is an important first step to encouraging children to be more physically active and lead healthier lives.

Children who are physically active are less likely to be overweight, are sick less often, do better in school, sleep better, and are less likely to feel sad, depressed, or stressed.

Data

The 2004 Minnesota Student Survey showed: Minnesota youth report participating in the following activities three or more hours per week

Obesity in children increases the more hours they watch television. Children who watch more than 3 hours or more television are 50 percent more likely to be obese than kids who watch fewer than 2 hours.

According to a nationwide by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, 38.2 percent of students watch more than 3 hours during an average school day. Overall, White students, 29.3 percent, were less likely than Hispanic, 45.9 percent, or African American students, 67.2 percent, to watch television three or more hours per school day.

Know your numbers

The American Academy of Pediatrics recommends no more than one to two hours of quality TV and videos a day for older children and no screen time for children under the age of 2. It is important to set media time limits. This includes time watching TV and videotapes, playing video and computer games, and surfing the Internet. One way to do this is to use a timer. When the timer goes off, your child's media time is up, no exceptions.

Key strategies

Move your television to a less prominent location
Keep the TV off during meals
Designate certain days of the week as TV free days
Do not use television as a reward
Listen to music or the radio for background noise
Set family guidelines for media content; choose age-appropriate content
Make media a family activity -- discuss what you see, hear and read as a family

Resources

Like to learn more about the SWITCH program? Visit www.mediafamily.org.
Interested in starting your own grassroots effort with local schools, clubs, religious congregations, and/or communities? Visit www.tvturnoff.org for information to get started.
Would you like to build on a local community example? Learn what Edina is doing to encourage families to spend quality, active time together by visiting www.edinaunplugged.org
Other helpful resources:
- The Children's Partnership: www.childrenspartnership.org
- Seattle and King County Public Health Department: www.metrokc.gov/health/reducetv
- “The Elephant in the Living Room” How to Make TV Work for Your Family: www.maketvwork.com