Children, ages 8 to 18, spend more time (44.5 hours per week) in front of computer, television, and game screens than any other activity in their lives except sleeping (Kaiser Family Foundation, 2005).

Approximately 30.3% of children (ages 6 to 11) are overweight and 15.3% are obese. For teens (12 to 19) the rate is almost identical: 33.4% overweight, and 15.5% obese (American Obesity Association, 2006). Further the incidence of Type II diabetes in children, the diabetes linked with obesity, has increased significantly in the past few decades.

• Obesity in children increases the more hours they watch television. These results were reported in a study by researchers at the University at Buffalo, Johns Hopkins University, The National Cancer Institute, and the Centers for Disease Control (Crespo, 2001).


• Nearly 1 of every 3 children is at risk of being overweight. Complications of obesity include high cholesterol, high blood pressure, type 2 diabetes mellitus, and many other health and social problems (Moreno, 2009).


• Reducing television viewing and computer use may have an important role in preventing obesity and in lowering BMI in young children, and these changes may be related more to changes in energy intake than to changes in physical activity (Epstein, 2008).


• Pre-School children watching more than 2 hours of TV per day are more likely to be overweight than children with limits on media use (Mendoza, 2007).


• A study has found that reducing screen time during adolescence and into adulthood is a strategy for reducing obesity (Boone, 2007).


• Some kids can lose weight just by reducing the amount of TV they watch, researchers assume this is related to TV-watching eating habits (Singh, 2008).


• For every one-hour increase in TV viewing per day, a study found higher intakes of sugar-sweetened beverages (one extra serving per week) and total calories (46.3 more calories per day), which may not seem like a lot, but it adds up over time. Other studies estimate that excess weight gain can be gained by only an addition of 150 calories a day. (Miller, 2007).


• A study found that children who watch more than three hours of television a day are 50 per cent more likely to be obese than kids who watch fewer than two hours. These researchers conclude that "more than 60% of overweight incidents can be linked to excess TV viewing" (Tremblay, 2003).


• A decline in physical activity from childhood to adulthood is associated with obesity and insulin resistance in adulthood (Dwyer, 2009).


• According to the Centers for Disease Control, 70% of overweight children between the ages of 5 and 17 years of age already have at least one risk factor for heart disease, including elevated blood cholesterol, blood pressure or increased insulin levels. These are the factors that lead to hypertension, diabetes, stroke, several types of cancer, and osteoarthritis (Centers for Disease Control, 2009).


• Children who are obese are at a greater risk for bone and joint problems, sleep apnea, and social and psychological problems such as stigmatization and poor self-esteem (Centers for Disease Control, 2009).


• Only 3.8% of elementary schools provide daily physical education for students (Kann, 2007).


• 12.9% of elementary schools, 28.7% of middle schools, and 58.2% of high schools allowed students to buy soda pop, fruit drinks that are not 100% juice, or sports drinks from a vending machine or in a school store, canteen, or snack bar during lunch periods (Kann, 2007).


• Children with obese parents are more likely to have higher BMI’s, percentages of body fat, and overall screen time compared to children of normal-weight parents (Steffen, 2009).


• Overweight children report they eat according to their mood status and prefer eating candies (Pinhas-Hamiel, 2009).


• Screen Time is directly related to lower cardiorespiratory endurance (Hardy, 2009).


• Children who use a lot of media have a lower activity level which is linked to a higher rate of obesity (Vandewater, 2004).


• A strong relationship was found between playing electronic video games and childhood obesity in school-aged Swiss children by researchers from The Children's Hospital of Philadelphia and the University Hospital Zurich (Stettler, 2004).


• In another study of preschoolers (ages 1-4), a child's risk of being overweight increased by 6% for every hour of television watched per day. If that child had a TV in his or her bedroom, the odds of being overweight jumped an additional 31% for every hour watched. Preschool children with TVs in their bedroom watched an additional 4.8 hours of TV or videos every week (Dennison, et al., 2002).


• Early childhood is a time of tremendous growth for children and the amount of physical activity positively affects the strength and amount of bone mass developed. A study of pre-schoolers found that girls who watched more television measured lower in the amount of hipbone density (Janz, 2001).


• Another study on the relationship between metabolic rates and television viewing found that metabolic rates during television viewing were significantly lower than during resting periods for a group of obese and normal weight children, ages 8 to 12 years old (Klesges, 1993).


• A study from Stanford University, researching the relationship between television viewing and weight, set out to measure body weight differences between two sets of third and fourth graders. One group was taught how to lessen their time watching television and playing video games. The second group received no such instruction and their TV and video game playing time went on as usual. For the first group, the instruction sought to establish a seven-hour a week limit on television and video game time. This would free up 14 hours to do something else. The results showed that the children who watched less television and played fewer video games had a significant reduction in measures of obesity, such as body mass index. The children who watched their usual amount of television had higher indicators of obesity. The only difference between the two groups was the amount of television and video game playing (Robinson, 1999).

As obesity becomes more of a health problem for our children it is increasingly important to encourage children to become more active. Limiting screen time and removing televisions from bedrooms can be important first steps to encouraging children into a more physically active lifestyle.

The Centers for Disease Control outline the benefits of regular physical activity for children:

• Improves strength and endurance
  
  
• Helps build healthy bones, muscles, and joints
  
  
• Helps control weight, build lean muscle, and reduce fat
  
  
• Reduces anxiety and stress, increases self-esteem and overall energy level
  
  
• May improve blood pressure and cholesterol levels
  
  
• Prevents disease and promotes health

• American Obesity Association (2005, May). Fact Sheet: Obesity in youth. Accessed at: http://www.obesity.org/information/factsheets.asp(last visited 06/22/09).
  
  
• Andersen, R. E., Crespo, C.J., Bartlett, S. J., Cheskin, L. J., Pratt, M. (1998, March 25). Relationship of physical activity and television watching with body weight and level of fatness among children. Journal of the American Medical Association, 279, 938-942.
  
  
• Boone, J.E, Gordon-Larsen, P, Adair, L.S, & Popkin, B.M (2007). Screen time and physical activity during adolescence: Longitudinal effects on obesity in young adulthood. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, Retrieved: June 17, 2009, from http://www.ijbnpa.org/content/4/1/26.
  
  
• Centers for Disease Control (2009). Childhood Obesity. Available online at http://www.cdc.gov/HealthyYouth/obesity/index.htm( last visited 06/22/09).
  
  
• Crespo, Carlos J. DrPH, MS; Smit, Ellen, PhD; Troiano, Richard P., PhD, RD; Bartlett, Susan J., PhD; Macera, Caroline A., PhD; Andersen, Ross E., PhD (2001, March 15). Television watching, energy intake, and obesity in US children. Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine, 155, 360-365.
  
  
• Dennison MD, Barbara A., Erb MS, Tara A., and Jenkins PhD, Paul L. (2002, June). Television viewing and television in bedroom associated with overweight risk among low-income preschool children. Pediatrics, 109, 1028-1035.
  
  
• Dietz, W. H., & Gortmaker, S. L. (1985). Do we fatten our children at the television set? Obesity and television viewing in children and adolescents. Pediatrics, 75, 807-812.
  
  
• Dwyer, T, Magnussen, C.G, Schmidt, M.D, Ukoumunne, O.C, Ponsonby, A.L, & Raitakari, O.T (2009). Decline in physical fitness from childhood to adulthood associated with increased obesity and insulin resistance in adults. Diabetes Care, 32, 683-87.
  
  
• Epstein, L.H., Roemmich, J.N., Robinson, J.L., Paluch, R.A., & Winiewicz, D.D. (2008). A Randomized Trial of the Effects of Reducing Television Viewing and Computer Use on Body Mass Index in Young Children. Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine, 162, Retrieved June 17, 2009,from http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/162/3/239.
  
  
• Gortmacher SL, et al (1996, April). Television viewing as a cause of increasing obesity among children in the United States, 1986-1990. Archives of Pediatric Adolescent Medicine, 150, 356-362.
  
  
• Hardy, L.L, Dobbins, T.A, Denney-Wilson, E.A, Okely, A.D, & Booth, M.L (2009). Sedentariness, small-screen recreation, and fitness in youth. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 36, 120-125.
  
  
• Janz, Kathleen F. EdD, Burns, Trudy PhD, Torner, James C. PhD, Levy, Steven M. DDS, Paulos, Richard, Willing, Marcia C. MD, Warren, John J., DDS (2001, June). Physical activity and bone measures in young children: The Iowa bone development study. Pediatrics, 107, 1387-1393.
  
  
• Kaiser Family Foundation (2005, March). Generation M: Media in the lives of eight to eighteen year olds. Available online at: www.kff.org/entmedia/entmedia030905pkg.cfm Accessed on 06/22/09.
  
  
• Kann, L, Brener, N.D, & Wechsler, H (2007). School Health Policies and Programs Study 2006. The Journal of School Health, 77, 385-397.
  
  
• Klesges, Robert C. PhD, Shelton, Mary L. MS, Klesges, Lisa M. MS (1993, February). Effects of television on metabolic rate: Potential implications for childhood obesity. Pediatrics, 91, 281-286.
  
  
• Mendoza, J.A, Zimmerman, F.J, Christakis, D.A, & (2007). Television viewing, computer use, obesity, and adiposity in US preschool children. International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, Retrieved: June 17, 2009, from http://www.ijbnpa.org/content/4/1/44.
  
  
• Miller, S (2007, February 28). Excessive TV viewing among young children is linked to poor eating habits. Retrieved June 18, 2009, from American Heart Association Web site: http://www.americanheart.org/
  
  
• Moreno, M.A (April 2009). Sugary drinks and childhood obesity. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 163, Retrieved June 22, 2009, from http://archpedi.ama-assn.org/cgi/reprint/163/4/400.pdf
  
  
• Pinhas-Hamiel, O, Bar-Zvi, E, Boyko, V, Reichman, B.M, & Lerner-Geva, L (2009). Prevalence of overweight in kindergarten children in the centre of Israel: Association with lifestyle habits. Child: Care, Health & Development, 35, 147-152.
  
  
• Robinson, Thomas N. MD, MPH (1999, October 27). Reducing children's television viewing to prevent obesity. JAMA, 282, 1561-1567.
  
  
• Singh, G.K, Yu, S.M, Siahpush, M, & Kogan, M.D (2008). High levels of physical inactivity and sedentary behaviors among US immigrant children and adolescents. Archives of Pediatrics and Adolescent Medicine, 162, 756-763.
  
  
• Steffen, L.M, Dai, S, Fulton, J.E, & Labarthe, D.R (2009). Overweight in children and adolescents associated with TV viewing and parental weight: Project HeartBeat!. American Journal of Preventive Medicine, 37, S50-55.
  
  
• Stettler, Nicolas, Signer, Theo, and Suter, Paolo (2004, June). Electronic games and environmental factors associated with childhood obesity in Switzerland. Obesity Research, 12, 896-903. Accessed: www.obesityresearch.org/ (visited 06/22/09).
  
  
• Tremblay, M.S., Willms, J.D. (2003). Is the Canadian child obesity epidemic related to physical inactivity? International Journal of Obesity, 27, 1100-1105.
  
  
• Vandewater, E.A., Shim, M., & Caplovitz, A.G. (2004). Linking obesity and activity level with children's television and video game use. Iournal of Adolescence, 27, 71-85.
  

Last revised: June 2009