RESEARCH / STUDIES: Educational TV for Toddlers OK

Study: Educational TV for Toddlers OK

By LINDSEY TANNER

CHICAGO (AP) — "Arthur" and "Barney" are OK for toddler TV-watching. But
not "Rugrats" and certainly not "Power Rangers," reports a new study of
early TV-watching and future attention problems.

The research involved children younger than 3, so TV is mostly a no-no
anyway, according to the experts. But if TV is allowed, it should be of
the educational variety, the researchers said.

Every hour per day that kids under 3 watched violent child-oriented
entertainment their risk doubled for attention problems five years
later, the study found. Even nonviolent kids' shows like "Rugrats" and
"The Flintstones" carried a still substantial risk for attention
problems, though slightly lower.

On the other hand, educational shows, including "Arthur," "Barney" and
"Sesame Street" had no association with future attention problems.

Interestingly, the risks only occurred in children younger than age 3,
perhaps because that is a particularly crucial period of brain
development. Those results echo a different study last month that
suggested TV watching has less impact on older children's behavior than
on toddlers.

FULL ARTICLE AT
http://ap.google.com/article/ALeqM5h8tS8GC0OUOLEBQ6xibgByvWIuGwD8SNB2A80