As parents, you may have, at one point or another, told your kids not to watch too much TV. However, being too strict with their viewing habits may not really give you your desired results. According to a recent article on TIME, you’ll have better luck changing your children's habits when you adjust your own. In a study initially published in the journal Pediatrics, researchers interviewed 1,550 parents with kids who were 17 years old or younger about how much time each member of the family spent in front of the TV.
The results revealed that children aged six to 11 still respond to viewing restrictions, and adolescents watch more TV than their parents think. The study also reported that every hour adults spend watching TV leads to an additional 30 minutes of screen time in kids.
This does not bode well for families who spend too much time in front of the screen, as this habit has been linked to poor sleep, health, and academic performance. That's why it's the parents' responsibility to educate their kids about proper television usage and to adhere to good viewing habits themselves.
(Photo by delayed gratification via Flickr Creative Commons)
