Empty Minds, Empty Calories

There are any numbers of threats to the well-being of our children these days: cars that go too fast in school crossing zones, Internet predators, global warming, the growing national debt, etc., etc., etc. However, I believe that the biggest threats to American youth today are two enemies that most unsuspecting families consider relatively benign - TV and soda.

TV can be a powerful medium, one that wields extraordinary potential, the potential to change the way in which we perceive our world, our future, and ourselves: I remember going to our neighbor's to witness Neil Armstrong take "one giant leap for mankind," my parents remember John Kennedy Jr. saluting at his father's funeral, and the horrific images of the World Trade Center Towers burning are forever seared into the collective consciousnesses of people all over the world.

However, TV is fundamentally a passive medium. Viewers do not help to create the reality TV presents; they merely receive images. Diametrically opposed to the process of reading, in which the reader, prompted by the author, actively participates in imagining the setting, the characters, and the emotions, watching TV demands only that the viewer be half-awake. (As an aside, it is also important to remember that the primary purpose of commercial TV is neither to inform nor to entertain but to sell products.)

This passivity takes its toll on children. According to recent research from New Zealand, there is a clear correlation between number of TV hours watched and obesity. The numbers of hours kids watch TV varies widely, but, on average, American children watch 23 hours of TV per week. It is no wonder that, according to the American Obesity Association, over 30% of children ages 6 to 11 are overweight, and 15% percent are obese.

Unfortunately, too much TV viewing poses threats to children other than unhealthy weight gain. For instance, for each hour of TV children under the age of three watched they were 10% more likely to have attentional problems as reported by their parents. And though researchers are loathe to conclude that TV viewing causes Attention Deficit Disorder, the America Academy of Pediatrics recommends that children less than 2 years of age watch zero TV while older children watch no more than 1-2 hours a day of non- violent, educational programming.

But soda might be just as unhealthy for kids as is TV. 56% of American eight-year-olds drink soda daily, and 15% of preschool age children consume 9 ounces or more of pop a day. Depending upon what source you choose to believe, on average, American children consume between 25 and 53 gallons of soda annually.

The amount of sugar (a can of non-diet soda has anywhere from 6-10 teaspoons of sugar) in all those gallons contributes not only to tooth decay but also to an increased chance of contracting diabetes. Not surprisingly, a child who drinks one 12-ounce soda a day increases her or his risk of childhood obesity by 60%. And because soda often replaces milk in children's diet, kids who drink a lot of pop tend not to ingest enough calcium to ensure strong bone density.

The bottom line is that soda is high in calories and low in nutrition just as TV is high in fostering passivity and low in stimulating imagination. Soda is responsible for empty calories just as TV is responsible for empty minds. If families can be more aware of the healthy nutritional needs of their children and monitor what their children watch on TV, teachers will thank you, and so will your children.

--Steve McKibben
12/11/05