Why do Children Spend so much Time Watching Television?

In today's society, children will happily spend hours in front of the television, flicking through hundreds of channels or watching DVDs. It used to be that children would go outside to play games with their friends and have a good run around, but that began to change once owning a television became the norm. As television ownership increased, so did the number of channels available, and consequently the range of programmes. As a result, there are now many more channels and programmes designed specifically with children in mind. Plus, many households have more than one television, so children can go to their rooms to watch what they want.

Whilst the children are in their bedrooms, watching television, their parents are most probably doing exactly the same thing downstairs, only the programmes being watched are likely to differ! Since parents can't be bothered to do anything other than watch television it is not surprising that children spend so much time watching television as well. From an early age, parents often stick their children in front of the television, and so this is what children are familiar with. There seems to be no reason for children to go outside and play when their parents are happy for them to stay indoors.

However, it is this general lack of activity that is one of the reasons for the prevalence of childhood obesity in society. Children would prefer to be watching television or playing computer games than running around, which means they are not burning as many calories as they should be. Combined with a poor diet, this lack of exercise will lead to excessive weight gain that could lead to health problems later down the line. It therefore makes you wonder why parents don't do more to encourage their children to take up a sport and get active, rather than letting them watch so much television.

The trouble is that many parents lead sedentary lifestyles that they then pass on to their children. They don't bother to exercise and may struggle with their weight, and so have no idea how to encourage their children to adopt healthier habits. They aren't even prepared to let their children go outside alone because of the potential dangers. Parents often fear that their children could be run over by a car when crossing the road or abducted by a stranger. Knowing that their children are safe and sound upstairs or in the living room is reassuring, even if it means their children miss out on exercise.

Watching television is a part of everyday life for most children because it is an activity that requires very little effort. Parents usually spend their free time watching television, as well, whilst occasionally there will be a television show that the whole family can watch together. There are some television programmes which have a certain amount of educational value, but most children would prefer to watch cartoons and entertainment programmes than anything educational. Thus, instead of doing something more productive with their time, children simply laze around watching too much television, seemingly because their parents can't be bothered to encourage their children to do anything else.