One might also consider parenting practices of using the TV as a babysitter…

Correlation is not causation. Perhaps the children who watch more TV have attention problems in early childhood, and therefore are more captivated by TV than by other activities that require them to sit still.

WOW I KNEW IT WASNT A GOOD IDEA JUST BECAUSE OF THE HABIT FORMING PROBLEMS BUT I DIDNT REALIZE THE DEVASTATING EFFECTS IT COULD HAVE ON A PERSONS MENTAL CAPABILITY IT KINDA MAKES ME THINK IVE DAMAGED MYSELF WITH TELEVISION .HOWEVER , I REFUSE TO BELIEVE THE DAMAGE IS IRREVERSIBLE . THATS LIKE SAYING WE KNOW EXACTLY WHAT THE HUMAN BRAIN IS CAPABLE OF AND ITS LIMITS.

Let me tell you, as a child I watched a tone of TV. I have memorized all of the dialog of Goonies and Home Alone along with other movies. I have been diagnosed with ADHD and other divelopmental problems. But I do believe it’s something you can manage with out meds. I am 29 now and I make a consious effort to act my age, but in a snap I can be 12 again. Bouncing off the wall, saying off the wall things and being crazy. My wife loves and hates it depending on when and where it happens. I bairly completed high school but I am a sucessfull office manager and Have created my own online pet food store with my own line of pet food. I am very creative though I cant draw or paint. I’m a day dreamer and a TV veggie all in one. I watch less TV it seems as each years goes by and I get older. But it’s still soemthing I love to hate.

Oh come on people. Is it really that big of a shocker. I have been saying this for years. I’m 23, always watched tv/ movies growing, video games, etc… all those “activities” stimulate the brain at all times. Every second something else is going on. I get bored fairly easy. I always like to be doing stuff. I don’t enjoy reading, it’s just too dull. I figure that television has something to do with it. Is ADHD as big as a problem as people say? Not really, throw your kids in sports programs, etc…

I believe anyone can say anything contributes to ADHD. One hundred years ago they probably didn’t know what ADHD was, if they did.. they would probably have said, “Radio” contributed to it. Before that? who knows..
I believe anyone can say anything contributes to ADHD. Is this supposed to make me take my child away from the Television? By the way, my nine child has never watched more than two hours of television at a stretch.. “Because” she has ADHD and cannot sit that long without medication! And what about movies that appear on Television these days, should only channel up those that are ‘less’ than two hours long? My daughter was just watching the HBO movie John Adams last night.. Whoops! Two hours of television, even though they’re getting an education and being entertained.. bad, bad.. I guess I’m digressing into a rant right now.. But this smacks of another, “Get your kid out of the house to play” things.. Anti-Television, Anti-Video Games, Anti-Parental Control over their own children. I’ve raised four children on the same dose of television.. only one is stricken with ADHD.. Go figure!..

While I was in graduate school a few years ago, in a learning and development course I took, we studied a Japanese study where they actually discovered that video games builds and strengthens hand/eye coordination, critical and stategic thinking skills, etc. Also, in this study they revealed that TV in moderation also helps to foster brain development and stimulation as part of the quick changes requires the brain to reprocess new content and make transitions.

I agree with Mr. Stacey all parents need to do is get their children engaged in outdoors, we limit our children to 1 hour of television a day, only because of time. Our children spend 90% of their time outside playing, or playing with inside games, toys, etc. Saturdays are a free day. in general, I believe many children just simply get board with things and quite frankly, ADD/ADHD is frequently over diagnosed and many of the symptoms are based upon a person’s personality/learning style. See. Anthony Gregorc’s, PhD., Learning Styles Inventory regarding Abstract Random, Concrete Random, Concrete Sequential and Abstract Sequential. Concrete Random personalities tend to demonstrate similar symptoms as ADD/ADHD.

You know what REALLY causes ADHD? A school system that is geared only toward the kind of child who is good at sitting still and doing worksheets and coloring! My daughter does well in the school system, because in addition to being very active, she also enjoys things like coloring, crafts and worksheets. My sons are experiential learners who have to do things hands on - and they were labled ADHD very early on in school. When they changed programs that is geared toward more experiential learners they did just fine! Not everyone in the world can be worksheet learners - nor is that necessarily the best way to learn every subject for those of us who do well with worksheets.

Kids with ADHD grow up to be just as RETARDED as the parents that allowed them to develop it.

So if your devoting your direct attention to the tv, cause the show is interesting to you, how is it that they claim your building a attention deficit, your focusing your attention on the show you are paying attention too. where is the adhd in focusing your attention. if they don’t pay attention to you turn the d?mn thing off. don’t load them up with prescription drugs cause the drugs are not going to miraculously alter there mind to make them pay attention to you.
sure there are exceptions, maybe 1 in 1000, the rest of them are lazy, loser parents who should try paying a little attention to them in the first place, most kids learn from a role model and if the role model or parent is a piece of garbage, then chances are the little one is not to far from the trash themselves. hurry up go get little jonny some drugs he’s watching tv again.

I don’t think that TV has to be blamed for ADHD. I can say parents have to be blamed to. I have three children that watched TV for more than 5 hours a day in their early ages (starting at 3 months). After kindergarten I gradually decreased their time spent watching TV. It depends on what they may have started like my children started with Beethoven classical then Barney, Richard’s scary and other educational programs. It’s like an early head start for them. They’ve always been on top of their class. Right now, they are in the GT (gifted and talented) program. I concluded that as long as the kid is getting something from the program it is ok to watch TV on the early ages. Now my kids can only watch TV on non school days as long as their chores and homework are done and it does bother them at all.

I’m 19, I watch TV all day every day, especially cartoons. It’s not TV’s or my fault that I dropped out of high school, wrecked two cars without a license, can’t hold down any relationship, or a job…………………what was I talking about????

Interesting topic. I have four sons. All very fun, active, bright children and as different from each other as they can be in looks, personality, and learning style.
One had some learning “issues/difficulties” from early on. We are a no TV household and have very limited computer games. Long story short, many people thought he was ADHD and/or dyslexic. I grew up under the impression that I had dyslexia as well so this was a possibility for him. I even wondered if I had ADHD as a girl. Through some good research, I stumbled on a concept that intrigued me. The problem he and I have is not any of those things. It had NOTHING to do with them. We have, it turns out, a very subtle visual perception, tracking, and eye convergence problem that, once corrected, completely erased our symptoms. The symptoms of which can mimic ADHD and dyslexia. There is VERY strong research about this that seems to never get the attention it should. WHY? There are no drugs involved!! You only learn exercises for your eyes and limit, get this, TV and computer time. You don’t have to get ride of it and people with “strong” vision don’t need to “worry” about it but it is in their best interest to use them in moderation. Please note that my son has 20/20 vision and I have 20/10 vision…it has nothing to do with that. This is a visual perception problem and there is help. The organization that helped us changed our lives. They work with people that are over the top smart and are bored in school, severely autistic kids, every sort of child/adult. I encourage all of you to research this b/c no matter how smart or “challenged” you are IT WILL CHANGE you for the better. Parents DON”T settle!!

If you need a head start go to:
http://www.achieverswisconsin.org This is the non-profit organization we used. They have some helpful check lists to help “assess” yourself/child. Very insightful. If you contact them they can give you some great, practical tips to use everyday.
For help with googling:
*visual perception brain teasers
*dyslexia and visual perception
Remember, when you google you end up with a lot of un-useful sites but keep looking. It’s there!

This study showed a link between ADHD symptoms ( not diagnosis ) and TV watching. It may be that children who are already ADHD are attracted and more interested in TV that other children. This study does not in any why show that TV viewing causes ADHD only that children with ADHD tended to watch more TV. I would be more interested to find out if other children in these families with out ADHD symptoms also tended to watch more TV.

I was diagnosed with ADHD as an adult but yet as a child (or even still as an adult) could not sit down to watch TV. It wasn’t stimulating enough. I spent most of my time playing outside with other children. I wouldn’t have cable TV if it weren’t for internet, today.

ADHD is genetic. Period. It is a chemical imbalance. Science has proven that. So everyone who thinks ADHD is bad parenting, you are not only misinformed, but you are probably not too intelligent if you are posting things that are just plain ignorant and not factual.

lets not be silly. if you take the time to step back and consider, or ponder…

while an infants brain is growing what surrounds the infant is what shapes the structure of the mind. every sound, touch, sight, emotions evoked. i don’t think a series of non involved images being flashed on a screen structures the brain in a fashion that prepares the mind for reality. every second in a child’s life is important. every input in a child’s environment is a brick in the foundation that will support them the rest of their lives. lets make those the best bricks we can. made of the substance of the love of life and fired to the hardness of true character by the fire of genuine experience. you all as parents who read this must realize that you and only you are responsible for your children’s future. only you make those bricks, have some pride in workmanship at a JOB that can not be shirked. you took it upon yourselves, the job that is. remember, if we all threw out our television sets, tomorrow would be a better day. also, Confucius says, self absorbed people and children don’t mix. pay attention to your kids. shoot your TV.

bye

The mind is an incredibly complex thing. I think that doctors do over-diagnose ADHD but some is ADHD and some is not. The brain has many ever-interacting parts that act and react to each other in unprecedented ways. I am not ADHD but I am bored in school (I’m writing this in class right now) I watch TV a few hour a day, but it is on as background noise while doing homework or I watch it after I’m finished. I also play some video games, for me they helped to develop problem-solving skills and hand-eye coordination. I am NOT saying this helps everyone. The people that play games to the extent that the games get in the way of important things, like homework or a job, really push my buttons. A key thing to remember is “Always in Moderation”. I am 16 and believe that the amount of factors that support brain development are everywhere; you, the child’s classmates, events in one’s lives, anything. The main influence however is at home. The parents and their child’s activities at home greatly influence whom they become. This is not speculation, this is fact. Remember to treat your kids well or it will come back to haunt them someday.