Should babies watch TV?

  
Asked in Health by Donna
edited by Instigator
Yes
or
No
2 Yes Takes
Write Your Yes Take
1 like 0 dislike
Are all parents so uptight? If you limit their time in front of the TV they'll be just fine. Just make sure they've got time to play with their toys and books too. An hour of TV every day is not the end of the world no matter how young they are. It's another way to stimulate their brain even if they aren't technically learning something because they're so young. It's like we've become a society of worrywarts. Pathetic.
0 like 0 dislike
Absolutely. Remember we are talking about babies, not school age children who should be limited with their TV time. But that's only because school age kids have so much else to do like read books and play outdoors. Letting babies watch TV actually is a form of interaction with the outside world. They hear all sorts of new words. They see interraction between people. They hear sounds and music. All of this stimulates mental growth. It goes without saying that parents must be careful to allow only appropriate shows. That isn't the issue here. The issue is simply whether babies should be allowed to watch TV. The parents control the input and the input stimulates responses which creates brain activity. And brain activity is what babies need to begin development. I would rather have a baby watch television than stare at a rattle hanging overhead in a crib for hours.
1 No Take
Write Your No Take
0 like 1 dislike
As little as possible. That time spent watching a video is taking away time they could be spending stimulating their brain with one-on-one interactions with people. If they're under a year and a half they probably don't even grasp that the images mean something. Even running the TV in the background keeps the baby from hearing conversations around them so they have more difficulty learning words. The videos themselves aren't harmful but be cognizant of the unintended side effects.
Written by a contributor
"As little as possible" means "Yes." A "No" answer would mean no TV at all. This take indicates that some TV is helpful but that too much TV could be harmful. That is probably everyone's take on the subject, including mine. But that still means the answer is Yes rather than No.

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