Death and TV
I wonder, if we could go into the future 100 years, we would discover that prolonged TV viewing had been proven to be bad for ones health and had become as taboo as smoking cigarettes? It appears that scientific evidence is emerging to support a resounding “yes”.
The story of cigarettes is well documented. The Surgeon General’s 1964 report Smoking and Health: Report of the Advisory Committee to the Surgeon General shocked the nation with its dire statistics. The report held cigarette smoking responsible for a 70 percent increase in the mortality rate of smokers over non-smokers. The report estimated that average smokers had a nine- to ten-fold risk of developing lung cancer compared to non-smokers: heavy smokers had at least a twenty-fold risk. The risk rose with the duration of smoking and diminished with the cessation of smoking. The report also named smoking as the most important cause of chronic bronchitis and pointed to a correlation between smoking and emphysema, and smoking and coronary heart disease.
Now 47 years later, our society has assimilated those facts, and changed dramatically. Simply watch one episode of AMC’s Madmen to recall how in the 1960’s smoking had been integrated into the daily routine of most families. That is not the case today. Modern families have replaced the smoking habit with the bad habit making the TV the center of their lives. TV viewing has established itself in the daily life of most Americans and according to the research of Frank Hu and Anders Grontved of the Harvard School of Public Health the average American watches 5 hours of TV daily. Their study Television Viewing and the Risk of Type-2 Diabetes, Cardiovascular Disease and All Cause Mortality, a Meta-Analysis, was published in the Journal of the American Medical Association in the June 15, 2011 edition.
Study results indicate more than 2 hours of daily TV viewing increased risk of developing type 2 diabetes and cardiovascular disease. More than 3 hours increased risk of premature death. Each additional 2 hours of daily TV viewing raised type 2 diabetes risk by 20%, cardiovascular risk by 15% and premature death by 13%. “The message is simple. Cutting back on TV watching can significantly reduce risk of type 2 diabetes, heart disease and premature mortality,” said Hu. “We should not only promote increasing physical activity levels but also reduce sedentary behaviors, especially prolonged TV watching.”
Well said! Thank you Dr. Hu.
