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Study suggests too much screen time and not enough physical activity may lead to childhood obesity
April 16, 2008Childhood obesity is a growing concern for pediatricians and caregivers. In response to this problem, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) created guidelines for children regarding physical activity and screen time, which includes both watching television and playing video games. The AAP has made the following recommendations: 1) boys should take at least 11,000 steps a day; 2) girls should take at least 13,000 steps a day; and 3) children should limit total screen time to two hours a day. A new study soon to be published in The Journal of Pediatrics evaluates these recommendations and the combined influence of screen time and physical activity on a child's risk of being overweight.
Kelly Laurson and colleagues from Iowa State University and the National Institute on Media and the Family studied a group of 709 children between 7 and 12 years of age in an effort to assess the recommendations of the AAP. The children were asked to wear pedometers and were given surveys to measure the amount of time spent watching TV and playing video games each day. The researchers then calculated the body mass index, a measurement that can be used to determine obesity, of each child. Almost 20% of the children surveyed were found to be overweight, with less than half meeting both recommendations of the AAP. According to Laurson, "Children not meeting the physical activity or exceeding the screen time recommendations were 3-4 times more likely to be overweight than those complying with both recommendations." He also notes that although some children surveyed met one of the guidelines, very few of the children met both. By encouraging physical activity and limiting screen time, caregivers may be able to reduce the risk of children from becoming overweight.
Elsevier Health Sciences
Childhood Obesity Current Events and Childhood Obesity News RSSResearchers: Ban on fast food TV advertising would reverse childhood obesity trends
A ban on fast food advertisements in the United States could reduce the number of overweight children by as much as 18 percent, according to a new study being published this month in the Journal of Law and Economics.
Fatty diet during pregnancy makes new cells in fetal brain that cause early onset obesity
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Eliminating soda from school diets does not affect overall consumption
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Tweens and teens double use of diabetes drugs
America's tweens and teens more than doubled their use of type 2 diabetes medications between 2002 and 2005, with girls between 10 and 14 years of age showing a 166 percent increase. One likely cause: Obesity, which is closely associated with type 2 diabetes.
Green neighborhoods may reduce childhood obesity
Childhood obesity can lead to type 2 diabetes, asthma, hypertension, sleep apnea and emotional distress. Obese children and youth are likely to be obese as adults, experience more cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure and stroke and incur higher healthcare costs.
Neighborhood greenness has long term positive impact on kids' health
In the first study to look at the effect of neighborhood greenness on inner city children's weight over time, researchers from the Indiana University School of Medicine, Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis and the University of Washington report that higher neighborhood greenness is associated with slower increases in children's body mass over a two year period, regardless of residential density.
Recommendations for children's exercise lacking say experts
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Walking forum report shows need to expand physical activity in schools
With childhood obesity expanding to epidemic proportions in the United States, educators, researchers and health practitioners are actively seeking to identify effective means of addressing this public-health crisis.
ISU study finds link between a mother's stress and her child becoming overweight
A mother's stress may contribute to her young children being overweight in low income households with sufficient food, according to a new Iowa State University study that is published in the September issue of Pediatrics, the professional journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics.
Risks and benefits of antipsychotics in children and adolescents
Many of the psychiatric disorders observed in adults have their onset in childhood or adolescence. In fact some studies show that at least 20% of children and adolescents will fulfil a diagnostic criterion for a mental disorder before reaching adulthood.
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