Combating childhood obesity with less screen time

By Kim Asche, University of Minnesota Extension

The important connections between childhood overweight and family habits related to eating together and television watching were discussed in the research article "Television Watching and Frequency of Family Meals are Predictive of Overweight Onset and Persistence in a National Sample of School Aged Children"; they reviewed findings from 8,000 children. Results from Gable et al. stated the “changes must occur in family life and children’s’ routines if overweight trends are to reverse direction. More research is needed to understand the mechanisms whereby television, family meals, and parents’ perceptions of neighborhood safety put children at risk for weight problems. A multifaceted, multidisciplinary approach to overweight prevention that involves family life educators and registered dietitians, among others is one place to being.”

Cutting back on “screen time” such as television, movies at home, DVDs, video games and computer entertainment is one way. It is considered the smartest move that a family can make. Following are five ways to make it easier than you ever imagined.

Make a commitment
Spend time talking with your entire family about the benefits of reducing the amount of screen time for everyone. Emphasize the positives and focus on the fact that these changes will give you more time to spend doing fun and creative things together. Some families find it helpful to sign a pledge together.

Have a plan and stick to it
Identify how much time you currently spend with screen entertainment. Decide how to gradually reduce the total amount of screen time. Taking television out of the child’s bedroom is a very helpful step. Some families set a specific number of hours per day; others designate specific times as screen free.

Be Patient
Reducing the amount of time that your family spends plugged into screens is a major change. It is often helpful to make a change this significance in small steps rather than in giant leaps. In fact, many children will hardly notice if you gradually decrease their television or video game time in 15- minute increments.

Be creative
The theme for Television Turn off Week — April 23-29, is “Imagine the Possibilities.” Use family time to brainstorm creative ways to spend screen free hours. For more ideas, go to www.tvturnoff.org.

Treasure your time together.
The really good news about screen-free time is that it gives families more opportunities to really be together. It gives you more time to talk, more time to dream, more time to be physically active, more time to read, more time to share values, and more time to enjoy each other’s company.

(Adapted from Eat Right Montana EatRightMT2000@aol.com)

Kim Asche is a health educator at the University of Minnesota Regional Extension Center in Hutchinson.