Scientists from the Harvard School of Public Health (HSPH) and Children’s Hospital Boston found that children who spend more time watching television are more likely to eat the high-calorie foods they see advertised. Previous studies have linked children who watch more television to obesity, but this study (results appear in the April 2006 issue of the Archives of Pediatric and Adolescent Medicine) breaks new ground by providing evidence explaining the connection.
Overweight young people are more likely to become overweight adults, at risk for diabetes and heart disease. The results of this study lend credence to a long-standing recommendation by the American Academy of Pediatrics to limit children to less than two hours of television each day.
