Television Time Effecting School Children

Results of a new study prove what we already know when it comes to children and the amount of television and video games time that they seem to be enjoying these days.

Children who spend more time in front of the television screen than they do outside playing with friends are at greater risk of developing attention span problems, a fact that can hurt them in the classroom.

The study was conducted by psychologists at the Media Research Lab at Iowa State University who followed more than 1,000 children for a year period, documenting their television time.

On average the children enjoyed well over four hours of TV time a day, and their teachers reported that many of the children had trouble concentrating in the classroom.

Analyzing their data, the researchers noted that those kids having problems in school were more likely to be in front of the television screen longer than those kids who were not having problems in school.

It is recommended that children only get two hours a day in front of the television, but the majority of children get far more than that, thanks to doting parents who want to keep their kids happy.