Study links TV, children's attention deficit

"The truth is there are lots of reasons for children not to watch television. Other studies have shown it to be associated with obesity and aggressiveness," said lead author Dr. Dimitri Christakis, a researcher at Children's Hospital and Regional Medical Center in Seattle.

The study, appearing in this month's issue of Pediatrics, involved 1,345 children who participated in government-sponsored national health surveys. Their parents were questioned about their children's TV viewing habits and rated their behavior at age 7 on a scale similar to measures used in diagnosing attention deficit disorders.

The researchers lacked data on whether the youngsters were diagnosed with attention deficit disorders, but the number of children whose parents rated them as having attention problems -- 10 percent -- is similar to the prevalence in the general population, Christakis said. Problems included difficulty concentrating, restlessness, acting impulsively, and being easily confused.

About 36 percent of the 1-year-olds watched no television, while 37 percent watched one to two hours daily and had a 10 percent- to 20 percent-increased risk of attention problems. Fourteen percent watched three to four hours daily and had a 30 percent- to 40 percent-increased risk compared with children who watched no television. The remainder watched at least five hours daily.

Among 3-year-olds, only 7 percent watched no television, 44 percent watched one to two hours daily, 27 percent watched three to four hours daily, almost 11 percent watched five to six hours daily, and about 10 percent watched seven or more hours daily.

In a Pediatrics editorial, educational psychologist Jane Healy said the study "is important and long overdue" but needs to be followed up to confirm and better explain the mechanisms that may be involved.

The researchers did not know what shows the children watched, but Christakis said content is probably not the culprit. Instead, he said, unrealistically fast-paced visual images typical of most TV programming may alter normal brain development.