digg

Join DiggAbout

Discover the best of the web!
Learn more about Digg by taking the tour.

TV can harm children much more than previously thought

physorg.com — Biologists have found that watching television inhibits the production of the hormone melatonin, which affects the immune system, sleep cycle and the onset of puberty. Lower levels of melatonin may also make it more likely that cell DNA will produce cancer-causing mutations, it said

Bury
show profanity settings
expand all
  • imperium2000, on 10/12/2007, -16/+52From the article:
    "Lower melatonin levels may be one reason that girls are reaching puberty much earlier than in the 1950s"
    "...more likely that cell DNA will produce cancer-causing mutations."
    "..may be a trigger for autism"
    "..appears to be a key cause of permanent eyesight damage"
    "...may be a bigger factor in causing obesity than diet or exercise."
    "...risk of developing Alzheimer's disease increases..."
    "...significantly increases the risk of developing type 2 diabetes."

    Yeah sure. So TV watching causes early puberty, cancer, obesity, autism, diabetes and alzheimers?
    This idiotic researcher gives all researchers a bad name.
    • killinger777, on 10/12/2007, -35/+20Kids who watch too much TV become fat, stupid, lazy, worthless little pieces of *****.
    • WatsonFilms, on 10/12/2007, -1/+75The question is if those effects are cause by watching television, or from the inactivity that accompanies television watching.
    • GawtMilk, on 10/12/2007, -3/+31@Watson

      Melatonin production requires sunlight. However, you can ingest melatonin in the form of a pill. My dad used to make me do it all the time when we travelled, it supposably helps fight jetlag. It isn't TV that harms children, it is lack of sunlight that harms children. And it isn't "much more than previously thought", as there have always been problems from people spending too much time indoors.

      You can either get off your lazy ass and go outside for half an hour a day, or take melatonin pills. This is such a joke...not serious at all. People who spend less then half an hour outside per day obviously have bigger problems than problems that result from a cathode ray tube.
    • xoxuxox, on 10/12/2007, -2/+48As someone who suffers from Alzheimer's caused by early puberty thanks to the onset of cancer of the diabetes which is directly related to my obese autism, I can honestly say that I do not watch that much television.
    • Flashman, on 10/12/2007, -2/+16Article boils down to this:

      "Kids, get outside for sunlight and exercise."

      All that "TV is the demon!" crap is just a distraction.
    • foobar5892, on 10/12/2007, -2/+32BREAKING: EATING FATTY FOODS AND NOT EXERCISING WILL MAKE YOU A MORBID FATASS

      ... revolutionary research finds.
    • MissTress, on 10/12/2007, -0/+6I totally agree. However it also seems as if this article took everything out of context. Pretty much any article that doesn't extrapolate its scientific findings instead of casually mentioning the studies is always questionable. This is really more a sociological aspect rather than a physiological one. Television is like anything, with discipline or moderation it is fine. It is when the television becomes a teacher/parent/babysitter that it can create a domino effect that leads to these other problems that are mentioned.
    • subxero37, on 10/12/2007, -1/+11"Lower melatonin levels may be one reason that girls are reaching puberty much earlier than in the 1950s"

      Yes. It must be TV. It certainly can't be the psychological pressure on girls of such young ages to give into society's norm. There was also a study that my biology teacher a few years back showed me that linked early puberty in girls to the chemicals used in everyday plastics, and had data and sense to back it up.

      The only thing remotely bad about TV is that you're not doing anything when you watch it. Me, I exercise during commercials. I'll write some code and just listen to the TV. I'll play the Wii. Since many new TVs aren't CRTs anymore, the "x-rays" argument is nearly moot. Even with a CRT, it's moot.

      I hate it when somebody in society, or a segment of society, just points their fingers at some random thing and says, "This is why [insert bad thing here] is happening! Ban it!"
    • jgrgg, on 10/12/2007, -1/+12DAMMMNNNN YOUU TV!!!
      LOOK WHAT U DID TO ME!!!!...
      oh crap missing my favorite show
      cya diggers
    • wafflez, on 10/12/2007, -1/+3war on drugs wasn't good enough for them >_>. I present to you, the War on Television. (/conspiracycomment) look at the similarities D=
    • cardyology, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Straight from the horses mouth eh Killinger777?
    • asaturn, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4wouldn't this apply to sitting in front of the computer all day? .... OH NO!
    • drgruney, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7Guys... we can still live our normal mom's basement lives. We just need to swing by the GNC for meletonin pills.
    • miles01110, on 10/12/2007, -0/+11Watch TV outside?
    • jinglee, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Actually, people sitting all day fart pretty smelly at times..thats a health hazard too, for your neigbour..
    • bmartin, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@asaturn: Nope. I've been sitting in front of a computer rather than TV since I was about 5. No autism, no eye damage, pubery @ 11, no cancer, no Alzheimer's, no diabeties, and I'm not a fatass. I don't own a TV and I've watched TV 3 times since last July: three football games, including the Super Bowl. I work in front of a computer practically all day.

      TV is mind-numbing *****. If I wanted background noise, I'd turn on the radio; as it is, my girlfriend makes more than enough background noise.
    • Twango, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1"The question is if those effects are cause by watching television, or from the inactivity that accompanies television watching."

      The corresponding question is: does that matter? If there's a solid correlation (which has recognized and measured other variables), the cause is a secondary consideration.

      Anyone who has sat in front of a computer "too much" (like I know I have) -- or at a desk at work -- knows the costs to body condition and social life. It's not rocket science.

      Sure, this is a quick article which doesn't consider the positive educational benefits of television. What's the downside of sitting in a chair in school all day? It may be deforming bodies in 47 ways, and probably does. Who worries about that?
  • thenativeraver, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5http://www.tslpl.org/images/Throw_out_TV.jpg

    Watch out kids!
    • AeonTorpor, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2MILF


      ... oh gawd! I just realized how old that tv looked and how old she must be now....... GIWHLF?
    • TheSak, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Grandmother I Would Have Liked to F*ck?
  • glasmodiar, on 10/12/2007, -0/+7This study makes some pretty lofty claims. Can anyone link to more info on the study or to other studies with similar findings?
  • nevesis, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8Their claim = youngsters who watch lots of TV have lower melatonin levels as a direct result of watching too much TV.

    Obvious = anyone who spends less time outside will have lower melatonin levels as melatonin production requires sun and light (but is actually produced in the dark). watching TV is one of many things youngsters do inside instead of outside.
    • malfing, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Actually, melatonin production is inhibited by light, which is exactly the problem. I agree that it is obvious, though. Melatonin production is triggered by a lack of light, so obviously if you stay up staring at a box throwing light at your eyes, your brain is going to think "hey, it's not time to sleep, there is light", and it will not produce melatonin. These kind of disturbances in melatonin production are widely theorized to explain larger cancer diagnoses for people who work artificially lit places when it is naturally dark outside

      melatonin does a lot of stuff in your body, including acting as an antioxidant...which protects against free radicals...which cause cancer. Actually, melatonin is a particularly good kind of antioxidant, because a lot of other antioxidants(for example, vitamin C), can undergo a chemical change(redox cycling) which makes them actually ENCOURAGE free radicals to spread.

    • SarahC, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2@malfing

      So if light in the eyeballs is to blame...... where was the problem when light bulbs were invented?
    • Fritzel, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1@sarahc
      If Digg.com wasn't around to comment on it, was there still a story?
  • Labradane, on 10/12/2007, -6/+2This is just a way to scare parents so they won't let there children watch as much T.V. ... Good idea
    • chaoswings, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0They haven't pinned anything on lightbulbs yet because they haven't done a study :)

      A lot of these studies really annoy me. The studies make people so parnoid about everything, a lot of the time they don't even do it properly and skew the results (intentional or not). I also dislike when they give worldwide statistics. They can be very misleading.

      Especially when they are hypocritical like obesity. Of course kids are going to be fat, if like in the US there is a mcdonalds on every corner and all their servings are much larger then other countries (not joking). Eating too much makes you fat was it nessasary to do a study to prove it? Act on the problem don't observe it and do nothing.
  • SarahC, on 10/12/2007, -5/+2It never did me any harm.
    • CedanticPunt, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Wow, a sample size of one in your scientific study. Smoking didn't kill me, therefore it can't be harmful... *rolls eyes*

      I suggest you up logical fallacies.
    • glinsvad, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1In mother russia tv does not harm the children; children harm the tvs... no wait...
  • jodokast, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Which is why I always have a bottle of melatonin pills handy.
  • oinkment, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2so if its all about sitting on your butt indoors, the same should go for you and me (grown-ups) sitting at a desk in the dark staring at a computer.
    i'm going to take my laptop outside...
    • Phil246, on 10/12/2007, -0/+4Make sure the sun isnt behind you!, its hard enough to read screens outdoors without having to compete with the glare
    • greenjizz, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1I'll just move my son's TV beside the window then:)
  • Gunsmith, on 10/12/2007, -1/+15I don't watch TV, not because of the health hazards, but because theres nothing worth watching.
  • KnightMareInc, on 10/12/2007, -3/+1compared to what?I doubt the tv itself its emmiting waves causing these problem.
  • physik, on 10/12/2007, -7/+0So, sitting around all day watching TV makes you enter puberty early? What a load of BS. If anything, it just makes you a fat, lazy moron.
    • Rammsteined, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2I wonder what made you an arsehole?
  • DforSpiD, on 10/12/2007, -4/+0The only reason television is bad for your health is that everything on it these days (well mostly everything) is so mind-numbingly stupid.
    Stupid, politically correct television is making the children into idiots!!!
    Children need to watch more violent television, and more intelligent television...
  • rmjb, on 10/12/2007, -1/+6I can tell you TV harmed my little brother pretty badly. It fell on his leg! He got a growth and had to have surgery.

    - rmjb
  • windhawk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3TV is the devil's portal to HEEEEELLLLL!
    Hamburgers are the devil's scouring pad.
  • rumor, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1all of those can be attributed to a lack of being outside doing things instead of being inside hidden from sunlight, doing nothing.
  • ivanjs, on 10/12/2007, -0/+8"TV can harm children much more than previously thought"
    Only if they watch Fox News
  • MrSunshine, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1Oh right, desensitizing isn't a problem, let the kids watch real-life shootings or murders and make them become sociopaths. But when it comes to physical harmings to themselves, ALARM ALARM!
  • MissTress, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2The point the article is really trying to make is all about dependence on television. It is pretty ridiculous to present a law against small children watching TV. We are trying to teach common sense to the next generation, not to make them dependent on laws for common sense. These claims by biologists are very out of context. A sedentary lifestyle with only one avenue of learning, culture and entertainment is really not good for anyone. Many forms of activities and media should be implemented, not just television. TV isn't the problem it is irresponsibility and discipline that are the true problems. Making stupid laws like this only propagate irresponsibility and the inability to use common sense for ourselves.
  • RADED, on 10/12/2007, -2/+2Its all the radiation.
  • Fhwqhgads, on 10/12/2007, -1/+4Yep, lets blame the TV. Not the parents fault at all..

    /sarcasm
  • Santabot, on 10/12/2007, -3/+2Guess we're all *****.
  • dwhitbeck, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2And here I thought that TV was just an anesthetic for the brain. Turns out it causes Alzheimer's, diabetes and autism too.
  • dongratius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Has anyone read the actual paper? I haven't but I suspect we're looking at a correlation between watching t.v. and all the syndromes they presented rather than a cause. It's not the t.v. that makes problems it's all the other stuff they're not doing that creates problems. Also a child whose parents allow them to watch endless t.v. is probably also at risk of lots of problems.

    About t.v. and Autism, let's just clear something up...watching t.v. will not make your child autistic. It may make your autistic child "more" autistic or your non-autistic child less socially skilled and therefore appear autistic...but it will not make a non-autistic child turn autistic.
  • erqua, on 10/12/2007, -2/+0What we need is a waterproof TV that is installed in the outside wall of the house. If the kids want to watch TV, they have to go outside and sit in the lawn.
  • endgames, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1I love cake like a fat kid loves TV!
  • ColonelJessup, on 10/12/2007, -1/+5Next on the violence channel, an all new OW MY BALLS!
    • Arcesius, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1bahahah... that's great =)

      I find it funny, though, that so many people are so quick to defend TV. We hear about lots of other stuff that are harmful for us, and generally there's a lot less people so quick to dismiss the research.
  • directedition, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Well, thank god for LCDs and plasma screen is all I can say.
  • banderbe, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1What I love is that they are imploring Brittains to curb TV watching to help save the NHS money!

    Maybe if people were responsible for their own health care they'd be more responsible with their own lives!

    Do the socialists ever think of that? Nope.
  • CarzorStelatis, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Notice that this 'study' didn't say how many children were studied, or for how long. So, when you leave out the media speculation, this just amounts to the same 'OMG CHILDREN R WATCHIGN TO MUCH TELEVIZION !!!1!1one' that the minority of health fanatics in Britain have been spouting for years (and getting ignored, I might add!)
  • banderbe, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3TV is responsible, in part, for many of society's ills.

    Read "Amusing Ourselves To Death" by Neil Postman, or read "The Medium Is The Massage" by Marshal McLuhan.
    • Twango, on 10/12/2007, -0/+2Any tool has positive and negative effects. Any tool can be used as a weapon: a hammer, a pencil, a paper clip, a stick, a friend can be used to murder. There are risks and benefits to all tools. All education is a kind of propaganda.

      All gains produce some losses. Rule of thumb: "all things in moderation".
  • cJw314, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1This so has nothing to do with the kids, but everything to do with the neglectful parents who don't spend time with their children.


    TV != babysitter.
  • dioscaido, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0I sometimes find it surprising how my instincts shape up relating to the kinds of things my (potential) children should and shouldn't do, considering how I grew up. Ideally I'd like my children to watch little or no television, with limited channel selection (i.e. - hell no they aren't watching MTV till they are older), opting for reading or more active activities. This even though I spent a lot of my childhood glued in front of the TV, watching shows and playing video games all day, and yet I was able to get good grades, go to a good school, find a great job, marry the love of my life, etc...

    Anyway I guess according to this research I should be retarded and sickly.
  • godd4242, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1There should be a name for this kinda article...
    Like how there are shockumentaries, there should be something for research that makes headline claims like TV causes cancer.
    Reports poorly done ontop of it.
  • Yggdrasil, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Being in the sun causes cancer, not being in the sun causes cancer, what are we supposed to do? :(
    • meshman, on 10/12/2007, -1/+2Ignore it. Here's a few quotes from my (passed) grandmother:

      "We ate all the eggs and bacon we wanted and we never had problems with cholesterol. We'd never heard of it"
      "We'd spend the entire morning plucking chickens. Then we'd all sit down for dinner (lunch was 'dinner') and not one of us would think to wash our hands. Nobody ever got sick from it."

      She grew up and lived in a smoking environment and died of natural causes at 92. Her sisters at 102, 98 and 96. The latter hasn't died yet. Get some sun. Get some shade. Eat some eggs. Just don't spend all day eating eggs in the sun. That's what paranoia freaks like this seem to forget.

    • owenlars, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0@meshman

      Were your grandmother's chickens genetically modified? Were they fed with grain mixed with with rendered animal products? Were they kept in small cages where they wallowed in their own excrement (creating a breeding ground for disease)? I suspect the farming conditions had quite a bit to do with why our grandparents were able to eat more of the types of foods that are so "bad" for us now.

      Also, you said they spent all morning plucking the chickens. I bet that was a lot of work. I know that I certainly don't have to do that much exercise to get my food. That probably had a lot to do with it too.

      In this context, "just ignore it" isn't a winning strategy unless you have a time machine that takes you back to the 1930s.
    • mahdaeng, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0die?
  • jordankunk, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Anyone else notice the Relevant Story of Nov 22, 2006?

    "Watching TV Can Improve Parenting And Child Behaviour"

    uummmm....
  • anomalya, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3thats why you buy them a computer not a tv, duh
  • je12u, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0Anyone notice the google ads on the page for
    Philips LCD tv's, hehe
    I advertise for cigarettes at the lung cancer wing of my local hospital too!
  • dysonlu, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1BREAKING NEWS: "Researchers" have found that spending considerable time in labs researching stuff may cause cancer, autism, Alzheimer's disease, obesity and type 2 diabetes.

  • jebudas, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1I cant help but notice that whenever there is a study that tells people to give up something that is important to them (tv, smoking, driving SUVs), there is always a backlash of people who talk about what crap the study is...
  • loconet, on 10/12/2007, -0/+3Forget the physical effects. How about the mental retardation kids are getting from watching crap like MTV?
  • riktam, on 10/12/2007, -2/+1that's the reason its called a fukkin Idiot Box
  • sostoudt, on 10/12/2007, -0/+0assuming this study is accurate, which i dont believe it is mainly the effects are cuased by the life style accompinied with people that watch tv all day, i wonder what the side effects are from computer use cuase ,,,, what was i talking about again?( damn alzheimers)
  • KingVegas702, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0they need to make a wii TV system. where you have to move around to keep it on the same channel AHHAHA
  • davidg11, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1I have a boy who is just turning two. He gets outside to play..fresh air, sunlight, etc...still watches more TV than the EXPERTS say he should (he's awake 11 hours a day and probably watches "educational" TV like sesame street 4 hours each day with the other 7 hours playing inside or outside)...at this point you'd think child protection services would drop in because I am such an awful parent....and he is a very rounded, non-autistic, very active that I can not see diabetes setting in...Its these expert studies that I gotta laugh at. I spent my youth watching sesame street, electric company, captain kangaroo, etc as far back as I can remember...and ...I'm a healthy, edumacated guy. What gives?
    • jebudas, on 10/12/2007, -0/+14 hours a day seems like an awful lot to me!
  • radix33, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1Damaging the eyesight part was probably due to the CRT TVs that were so popular up until the late 90's. Of course the size of TVs back then were so small that you have to be less than 5 feet to watch it, bombarding your eyes with radiation.

    Nowadays, TVs are large so kids can now watch them at a more comfortable distance such as 10-11 feet. The popular TVs people buy now are plasmas, LCDs, and rear projection TVs, so they don't emit as much radiation as CRTs.

    We should all be more worried about the psychological damage, such as violence and subliminal messages from the TV programming.
  • steve693, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1So. . .watch TV by an open window?
  • XxjdxX, on 10/12/2007, -1/+1they're all lies i tell you! lies! i didn't get three testicles because of t.v.!
  • Hidama, on 10/12/2007, -0/+1So that's why I have poor eyesight.

    Oh wait, that's because I lived on a computer since the age of 12.
  • glozycom, on 10/12/2007, -1/+0Check this links

    http://glozy.com Media Portal
    http://tv.glozy.com/Live/portal.htm Watch free 2300 Live TV Stations
    http://cams.glozy.com/portal.htm watch 4000 live webcams
    http://radio.glozy.com/portal.htm listen 8000 radio stations
    http://videos.glozy.com/portal.htm Watch free tv shows and series
    http://movies.glozy.com/portal.htm Watch free movies and downloads
    http://cartoons.glozy.com/portal.htm Watch free cartoons
    http://anime.glozy.com/portal.htm Watch free Anime movies
    http://asian-drama.glozy.com/portal.htm watch Asian Movies
    http://tv-shows.glozy.com/portal.htm TV Shows

    OTHERS
    http://videostop10.com Video Collection Portal
    http://tvportal.co.uk
    http://pinoytelevision.com
    http://nederlandstv.com
    http://pinoystreet.com
    http://bootsgames.com
    http://xbox.bootsgames.com
    http://playstation.bootsgames.com Free online games
    http://nintendo.bootsgames.com Free download games
  •  

    Login or register to add a comment

    Create a new account or login to join in the conversation on Digg. You'll also be able to Digg stories to help promote things you like.


© Digg Inc. 2008 — Content posted by Digg users is dedicated to the public domain.
DIGG, DIGG IT, DUGG, DIGG THIS, Digg graphics, logos, designs, page headers, button icons, scripts, and other service names are the trademarks of Digg Inc.