Associations of TV viewing duration, meals and snacks eaten when watching TV, and a TV in the bedroom with child adiposity

In this 2018 study, young children were examined on certain TV-viewing parameters as well as their adiposity-related features. The purpose was to determine the relationship between these TV-watching parameters and the adiposity in early life. The duration of TV watched was reported by the parent, while measures such as waist circumference, BMI, the sum of triceps and subscapular skinfolds, were inspected when the offspring was ~12, 18, 24, and 36 months of age. Collings et al. discovered one association in this experiment. Every hour spent watching TV per day correlated with a 0.075-cm larger waist circumference in the child, independent of the covariates. The study concludes that TV viewing duration is independently linked with abdominal adiposity in young children. Restricting TV watching from an early age may be an important factor in the prevention of obesity. [NPID: behavior, TV, television, screen time, waist circumference, skinfolds, obesity]

Year: 2018

Reference: Collings, P. J., Kelly, B., West, J., & Wright, J. (2018). Associations of TV Viewing Duration, Meals and Snacks Eaten When Watching TV, and a TV in the Bedroom with Child Adiposity. Obesity (Silver Spring, Md.), 26(10), 1619–1628. https://doi.org/10.1002/oby.22288