Study: TV won’t hurt, won’t help
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Thursday, April 16, 2009
6 - 12 months
The good news is infants won't be irrevocably damaged by
spending some time in front of a television. The bad news is it
won't help them either, say researcherass with the Center on Media
and Child Health at Children's Hospital Boston.
The new study of nearly 900 mothers and toddlers showed no significant differential in cognitive test scores between kids who had watched television under the age of 2 and those who hadn't, breaking with prior studies that showed a demonstrable negative connotation.
Dr. Michael Rich, director of the center and a co-author of the study, says the research is a blow to marketers who claim their "baby videos" can improve mental development in infants.
"Better than putting the kids in front of something that will drill them on their alphabet, give them a stack of paper and crayons," Rich suggests.
