With the news in Egypt causing almost everyone to be glued to the TV, how much viewing should children be allowed, asks Gihan Shahine Fatemah, the 35-year-old mother of three boys, complains that her eldest boy, nine-year-old Abdel-Rahman, is almost addicted to television and computer games. "He spends most of his vacation lounging in front of the TV," Fatemah told Al-Ahram Weekly. "Otherwise, he is either on the Internet or playing computer games." Although Fatemah makes sure that her son is watching useful programmes and playing games that are supposed to help develop his mental skills, the 35-year-old mother is wary that too much viewing may be detrimental to her son's health. "I sometimes feel he is as lazy as an old woman," she said sarcastically. "I keep encouraging him to break this bad habit, but sometimes I just can't seem to do anything about it. The problem now is that his younger brothers are watching with him and getting similarly addicted to television," she said.atemah, at least, is aware that too much screen watching may have negative repercussions on her children, and she is trying to help them avoid it. However, some other mothers tend to use the video screen as a kind of free electronic babysitter that allows them to go ahead with their daily chores while parking their children in front on the TV. "You just can't help it," said Samah, the mother of two kids, noting that without DVDs and television she would not be able to find any alternative entertainment for her children when she is busy working or finishing household chores. Samah says she makes sure her children watch amusing and educational stuff, but many other children remain parked in front of general TV channels, and according to recent studies these may have the effect of teaching them bad words or habits, or sometimes even turning them violent. A recent study by the Kaiser Family Foundation (KFF), a US-based non-profit research foundation focusing on healthcare issues, revealed that most children in the US spend long hours glued to the screen even before they go to school. According to the study, "two-thirds of infants and toddlers watch a screen an average of two hours a day; kids under age six watch an average of about two hours of screen media a day, primarily TV and videos or DVDs, and kids and teens of eight to 18 years spend nearly four hours a day in front of a TV screen and almost two additional hours on the computer (outside of schoolwork) and playing video games." These figures relate to the United States, but exactly how much children should be allowed to watch remains an issue of debate among experts worldwide, and there is no consensus on the issue. Some experts argue that watching TV can help young children to learn numbers, the alphabet, and general information about wildlife, health and nature through kids' educational programmes. However, others insist on zero TV watching. The majority of experts stand somewhere in the middle of these two extremes, saying that watching TV in moderation can be fine if parents monitor the content of TV programming and set limits to TV watching as perhaps an occasional entertainment. Yet, at least for children under two years of age, the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommends that they do not watch "any TV" at all. Children "older than two should watch no more than one to two hours a day of quality programming," the Academy added. The AAP's logic is that the first two years of life "are considered a critical time for brain development" and that "TV and other electronic media can get in the way of exploring, playing, and interacting with parents and others, which encourages learning and healthy physical and social development." In the case of older children, staying glued to the screen for long hours "may also interfere with activities such as being physically active, reading, doing homework, playing with friends, and spending time with family," according to the study.eba El-Shahawi, a professor of child psychiatry at Ain Shams University in Cairo, goes even further by recommending zero watching during the first three years of a child's life. "In many European countries such as France screen material for children under three has been banned," she claimed. According to al-Shahawi, any type of watching, including playing computer games or watching DVDs, during this period of a child's life can have negative effects on the child's social abilities. Even educational programmes have been found to have drawbacks: learning through fun characters and music can render class teaching boring to some children, and these may then dislike school, she said. "Many mothers may find it easier to tuck their toddlers in front of the screen until they finish their household chores, but both mother and child will benefit more if the mother engages her young child in those chores," El-Shahawi added. "It will take the mother more time and effort to do so, but the mother will then have more time to talk to her child, and in the long term the child will learn to share in household responsibilities." Even older children should not be allowed more than an hour or a maximum of two hours of viewing per day, she said. "Watching TV has seriously affected family networking," El-Shahawi added, saying that "we need to go back to the good old days when the whole family used to engage in playing games with children." "Children can get addicted to computer games and DVDs to the extent that they may sacrifice socialising, having meals with the family or playing sports. This has even more serious repercussions when a child grows to his or her teens, for then that child may experience withdrawal problems." Even in the short term, El-Shahawi said, screen games can give the impression that success or failure is only a finger-click away, and a child may feel that he can succeed in things with very little effort as a result -- a far cry from the effort needed to excel in real life. "The result may be that the child will come to hate studying, or will be reluctant to help out at home, both things that call for effort on his part," she explained. Experts at the website kidshealth.com have similarly found links between excessive screen watching and children's violence, obesity, risky behaviour and bad habits. According to the site's editor, Steven Dowshen, TV violence may lead to imitation among children in the US. Violence on TV is sometimes portrayed as "a fun and effective way to get what you want," and more often than not "violent acts are perpetrated by the good guys whom kids have been taught to admire," he said. "Behavioural problems, nightmares, and difficulty sleeping may follow from exposure to media violence," Dowshen warned. El-Shahawi agrees. "Many cartoons, even those for very young children, are full of violent scenes that children may then emulate," she said. "A child may also think that he can jump from a high chair or even from the balcony without harm as a result of watching similar acts in cartoons." In older children, excessive TV watching may lead to risky behavior, Dowshen warned. American TV "is full of programmes and commercials that depict risky behaviours (such as drinking alcohol, doing drugs, smoking cigarettes, and having premarital sex) as cool, fun, and exciting," he explained. "And often, there's no discussion about the consequences of those actions." Health experts have also found links between excessive TV-watching and today's burgeoning obesity. Children who stay glued to the screen spend long hours without doing any physical activity, and often they munch on unhealthy snacks, usually those advertised on TV, while they watch. "Children get excited while watching an action movie or playing video games, and as a result they may not realise they are overeating," El-Shahawi said. She advises parents not to let children under 11 years of age watch bad TV news because this may make them feel insecure or anxious. To avoid such potential risks, experts at the website babycentre.com advise mothers that "the best way to handle how much television and video your toddler watches is to think of them as refined sugar: you want your child to enjoy this seductive stuff without consuming too much of it." How much is too much? THE FIRST piece of advice experts give mothers on controlling their children's TV watching is to start putting limits from day one. "Starting out tough from day one onwards is the key to keeping viewing time under control," advise experts at babycentre.com. "It's a lot easier to relax your standards later than it is to wean an 18-month-old from a three-times-a-day TV habit." If you cannot reach zero, keep TV watching to a bare minimum for children under the age of three. Experts advise breaking TV viewing up into 15-minute increments. "Much more than that, and your toddler's brain can shift to autopilot," warns babycentre.com. Keep the television out of your child's bedroom and keep it switched off during meal times. Select useful entertaining programmes and avoid random TV watching. Avoid violent and scary shows that can encourage aggressive behaviour and cause nightmares. "Instead, choose simple programmes that emphasise interactivity. The best shows are those that inspire your child to makes sounds, say words, sing, and dance." Slow-paced material is preferred for toddlers, since too much action and quickly changing images can give them little chance to absorb information and may be confusing. Recording programmes ahead of time may help you to have better control over what you want your child to watch and when. Also, try to watch along with your child in order to provoke critical thinking by asking questions and relating what your child watches to daily life. Get the greatest benefit from any TV show by discussing it after it has finished and by extending its content to books and other activities. One recent study found that children who watched TV in moderation along with a parent scored significantly higher academically than those with moderate access to television who watched without a parent and those with unlimited access to television. Place the TV set in a room with lots of toys and entertainment materials like books, colouring materials and puzzles in order to distract your child's attention from the screen. Be a role-model and do not let the TV be the backdrop for your own activities. Above all, play with your child and engage him in household chores instead of leaving him parked in front of an electronic tube.
