Children who have TVs in their rooms gain more weight than children who don't have television sets in their room, a new study finds.
Researchers of the study found that children who have television in their rooms were about one pound heavier than those who didn't have one. These findings were more prominent among children aged 10 to 14.
Such children also had a higher Body Mass Index which means they are at a higher risk of obesity. Researchers also noted that the weight gain was unrelated to the amount of time spent viewing television.
For the study, Dartmouth University researchers collected data from 3,055 children ages 10-14 and their parents, who were taking part in an ongoing survey of American adolescents in 2003. Similar information was again gathered in 2005 and 2007.
Television sets were not the only problem. According to statistics, nearly 50 percent of children aged five to 15 watch content on devices other than a TV, such as a laptop, tablet or mobile phone, Daily Mail revealed.
Researchers were not able to say for certain that TVs in children's bedrooms caused obesity or weight gain. However, they did find that even when influencing factors like socioeconomic status, parenting styles, education levels and total TV viewing time were controlled, similar findings were observed. Studies have also found that nearly 50 percent of children have television sets in their bedroom by the time they are aged five and a half years.
One possible cause might be because a TV in the bedroom leads to more sedentary behavior, more exposure to high-calorie food ads and added snacking. Findings of the study are very important because at least 60 percent of children in the United States have television sets in their bedrooms.
"This obesity risk factor accounts for over 15 million pounds of excess weight gain per year among U.S. adolescents," lead researcher Diane Gilbert-Diamond of the Department of Community and Family Medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth said, according to NBC News.
Another study found that heavy kindergartners are more likely to be obese by eighth grade. Therefore, it is essential that parents tackle this problem as soon as possible.
A new study offers a way to tackle this problem. The study found that kids who play active video games might lose unwanted pounds. Hence, the negative of having a TV in the bedroom can be warded off if children are allowed to play certain video games.
"The latest and greatest active video games that require players to move their whole body are an appealing way to promote exercise among overweight and obese children," Stewart Trost, a professor of physical activity and health at the University of Queensland in Australia said, according to WebMD.
Findings of the study were published online in JAMA Pediatrics.
