TV Viewing Doesn't Help Or Harm Babies

Apparently stationing an infant in front of a DVD won’t turn them into a baby Einstein. A new study suggests that TV viewing before age two doesn’t improve language and visual motor skills.

“Contrary to marketing claims and some parents’ perception that television viewing is beneficial to children’s brain development, no evidence of such benefit was found,” says Dr. Marie Evans Schmidt, lead author of the study, which analyzed the data of 872 children from birth to age 3. Researchers did not find evidence that watching TV harms a child, but scientists say other studies have linked TV exposure to increased risk of obesity, attention problems, and decreased sleep quality. [EurekAlert]