Those who watch at least two hours of TV a day increase their risk of early death by 13 percent, according to a recent study. The study also found that for every two hours of TV watched, the risk of diabetes increases by 20 percent over eight years, and heart disease increases by 15 percent over 10 years. In general, Americans log an average of five hours of TV viewing a day. The study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, reveals that prolonged TV watching means people are engaging in sedentary behavior for hours a day, and most likely eating unhealthy food while doing so.
The author of the study, Dr. Frank Hu, of the Harvard School of Public Health, told Reuters Health that “cutting back on TV watching is an important way to reduce sedentary behaviors and decrease risk of diabetes and heart disease.” Hu and his team reviewed previous research that examined the link between TV time and diseases such as type 2 diabetes. Their analysis included eight studies that followed more than 200,000 people for an average of 7 to 10 years.
“It’s true that people who watch a lot of TV differ from those who watch less, especially in terms of diet and physical activity levels,” Hu said. People who watch a lot of TV are more likely to eat junk food, he explained, but unhealthy diet and inactivity are also consequences of prolonged TV watching, so they explain some of the effects of the sedentary behavior.
3 comments
Viviet Dsouza says:
Aug 4, 2011
Mum enjoys her sitcoms and apparently, she clocks a lot more than 2 hours. Luckily she is 80+. So repercussions immaterial, i think the twilight of her years should give her joy. And TV does!
Collins K. Asamoa-Afriyie says:
Aug 9, 2011
Yes, There have been lots of studies about corelations between watching TV and sedentary lifestyles which lead to chronic diseases on of course-deaths.
However, studies also show that laughter is good for health.Therefore, I expect some one who watches his/her favorate TV programs health to be improved in one way or the other. For example, laughter can reduce or prevent stress.Studies show that stress is one of the risk factors of many disease including depression, heart problems,stroke,and other chronic diseases.
In view of these, I would expect the health of those who spend longer hours watch “good” TV programs of their choice to be improved but not early death. I think that there are people who would not even get up to eat or do anything if their favorate TV programs are on. Unfortunately, most studies have only looked at unhealthy diet aspect of those who watch TV for too long.
I would propose that a study be done to look into the other side of watching a “good” TV program and the impact on individuals health. I would be happy to ba a part of that study.
Sukhjeet Kaur says:
Oct 26, 2011
In agreement with Mr. Asamoa-Afriyie above, watching too much TV isn’t bad if it has beneficial health purposes, such as reducing stress, because stress is related to diabetes and heart disease. With stress, your blood sugar levels have greater chances of increasing. Watching excess TV along with unhealthy diets and little exercise can increase the risk of diabetes and heart disease, but genetics may also be a factor. Was there any study done that incorporated the effects of genetics into this topic because genetics and nutrition affect both of these diseases to varying degrees. Also, specific populations and cultures may be more prone to these diseases, so it’s important to know about the population sample in each study.