First Years

Presidential hopeful Hillary Clinton has been reviled and revered for evoking the African proverb, “It takes a village to raise a child.” Regardless of our political leanings, today’s parents are basically on their own when it comes to childrearing. In many cases, both mom and dad work full-time outside of the home. We’re juggling careers, finances, housekeeping and childcare, and support from family members, friends or the community at large can be sporadic at best. So, when an opportunity presents itself (in the form of a big black box in the living room) for parents to shower or cook dinner without a child underfoot, it’s time to celebrate.

“Not so fast!” says the American Academy of Pediatrics and the majority of child health advocates across the country who are finding more and more reasons why Big Bird, Barney and Baby Einstein should not be playdate regulars. Anti-TV research puts the big kibosh on many parents’ daily sanity breaks. No more letting Curious George mind your 1-year-old while you catch up on housework. If I sound a little bitter, it’s because it’s really, really hard to put down the remote control…but the facts are the facts.

Watching too much television causes
developmental delays

Studies have linked too much time in front of the TV to autism, ADD/ADHD and delayed speech development. “Early television viewing has exploded in recent years and is one of the major public health issues facing American children,” says Associate Professor of Health Services Frederick Zimmerman, lead author of a recent University of Washington study that suggests 40% of infants and 90% of 2-year-olds tune in on a
regular basis.

Why the large number of boob-tube babies? According to the university study, many parents believe the videos and television programs their children watch are educational. A little more than 20% of parents admit to using media as an electronic babysitter. The study points out that while educational programming, such as “Sesame Street,” can boost learning in preschool-aged children, the learning potential isn’t there for babies and young toddlers. The same goes for DVDs, which claim to have educational agendas.

Turn off the TV and turn on imagination

Television viewing of any kind before age 2 is a “no-no,” according to the American Academy of Pediatrics. Toddlers should spend less than 2 hours a day in front of the television. If you haven’t stocked your media cabinet with Baby Einstein DVDs, you’re one of the lucky ones who won’t have a habit to break. For those of us who have become accustomed to brushing our teeth to the “Teletubbies” theme song, it’s time to think twice about our babies’ media diets. A 30-minute program may be innocuous, but it’s easy to let that 1/2 hour extend to 1 or 2 hours a day – time that researchers say is better spent reading to your child, engaging in creative play or allowing Junior to turn his room into a disaster area.

Just be smart about it

For most of us, television viewing is a way of life. It would be great for my kids if we all sat on the sofa reading The New York Times together instead of catching the latest ditty on “American Idol,” but as long as I’m married to my husband, that’s not going to happen. What I think all of us parents can commit to is being aware that TV programming, DVDs and videos aren’t suitable substitutes for the real work of childhood...play.


S. Danyelle Knight is a contributing writer to Inland Empire Family Magazine.