High blood pressure, high blood sugar levels, excess body fat (especially around the waist), and abnormal cholesterol levels are all symptoms of metabolic syndrome. It is linked to an increased risk of heart disease, stroke, and type 2 diabetes.
A new study from the University of Otago adds to the evidence that watching too much television as a child can lead to poor health in adulthood. The study, led by Professor Bob Hancox of the Department of Preventive and Social Medicine and published in the journal Pediatrics this week, discovered that children who watched more television as children were more likely to develop metabolic syndrome as adults.
Metabolic syndrome is a group of conditions that include high blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat, and abnormal cholesterol levels, all of which increase the risk of heart disease, diabetes, and stroke.
Television viewing has a low energy expenditure, which could displace physical activity and reduce sleep quality. Screen time may also promote increased energy intake, with children consuming more sugar-sweetened beverages and high-fat dietary products while eating fewer fruits and vegetables.
Professor Hancox
Using data from 879 Dunedin study participants, researchers discovered that those who watched more television between the ages of 5 and 15 were more likely to have these conditions at 45. Television viewing habits were assessed at the ages of 5, 7, 9, 11, 13, and 15. They watched just over two hours per weekday on average.
“Those who watched the most had a higher risk of developing metabolic syndrome in adulthood,” Professor Hancox explains. “More childhood television viewing time was also associated with a higher risk of overweight and obesity, as well as a lower level of physical fitness.”
Boys watched slightly more television than girls, and men were more likely than women to have metabolic syndrome (34% vs. 20%). However, the link between childhood television viewing and adult metabolic syndrome was observed in both sexes and may be stronger in women. There was little evidence that cutting back on television as an adult reduced the link between childhood television viewing and adult health.
“While, like any observational study, researchers cannot prove that the association between television viewing at a young age directly causes adult metabolic syndrome, there are several plausible mechanisms by which longer television viewing times could lead to poorer long-term health.”
“Television viewing has a low energy expenditure, which could displace physical activity and reduce sleep quality,” he says. “Screen time may also promote increased energy intake, with children consuming more sugar-sweetened beverages and high-fat dietary products while eating fewer fruits and vegetables. These habits could last into adulthood.”
The findings are significant because screen time has increased in recent years as a result of new technologies.
“Today’s children have far more access to screen-based entertainment and spend far more time sedentary.” This is likely to have even more negative consequences for adult health.
54vb “These findings support the World Health Organization’s recommendation that children and young adolescents limit their recreational screen time.”
