Too much electronic stimulation

The Kaiser Family Foundation deserves credit for being the first to comprehensively study how infants, toddlers and preschoolers are being exposed to television, computers and other interactive media. As its report, released earlier this week, makes clear, no one knows for sure what the long-term effects of this exposure means. Common sense would suggest, however, there is ample reason for alarm.

As the study found, the very youngest of children today are immersed in media virtually from the moment of birth. Nearly half of kids under 6 have used a computer, and they spend an average of nearly 2 hours a day in front of a computer or video game. This compares with 2 hours a day spent playing outdoors and only 39 minutes spent reading. Three-quarters of them can turn on a television by themselves, and one-third know how to boot up a computer.

On the one hand, concerns about the so-called "digital divide" seem naive in the face of this evidence. Sophisticated media are becoming ubiquitous.

On the other hand, previous studies showing how constant exposure to media leads to aggressive and anti-social behavior would tend to indicate that this is a most disturbing trend. Not long ago, the American Academy of Pediatrics issued a blanket statement saying kids under 2 should not watch television, period. Also, the statement said no child, regardless of age, should have a television set in his or her room.

The Kaiser study found that 36 percent of all kids 6 and under have televisions in their room.

Parents may console themselves by purchasing videos specifically geared toward babies and toddlers, a relatively new niche in the video market. Some of these seem to have an almost hypnotic effect on young minds. But we think it would be much wiser to pay attention to some of the questions posed in the Kaiser report.

For example, can infants and toddlers properly concentrate on learning language and physical skills when they are exposed to constant background noise from televisions? The study found that 65 percent of children live in homes where the television is left on half the time or more.

Will all this time spent in front of screens add to the nation's obesity problem, dooming young lives to chronic health problems? Are eyes being strained at unhealthy levels? How are very young children affected by marketing? Does all this "screen time" detract from outdoor play or interaction with loving parents, and how will this affect a child's development?

Kaiser says further studies are needed to answer these questions. In the meantime, it seems obvious that parents who overindulge their children in electronic stimulation are taking a terrible risk.