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Health
PND Connections - The Role of Media in Childhood Obesity
Children who spend a lot of time in front of the television are more likely to be overweight. But contrary to common assumptions, their obesity may be more the result of the media messages they receive than a lack of physical activity. A new report from the Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation, The Role of Media in Childhood Obesity (12 pages, PDF), reviews more than forty studies on how the media contribute to the nation's rising childhood obesity rates and finds that children tend to lose weight when their time in front of the television is reduced, even if it means replacing it with other sedentary activities such as reading. Many of the studies show that children's exposure to food advertising influences their consumprion of soda, cereal, candy, and fast food. The report offers several policy recommendations, including regulations on food ads targeted to children, more public education campaigns to promote healthy eating and exercise, and incorporating messages about healthy eating into TV storylines.
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