Television increases hypertension in children
If the experts recommend that our children not be many hours a day in front of the television, a new investigation comes to give the reason to them and more reasons to the parents: children who watch more than two hours a day television (they are in front of the computer or playing video games) they may have a 30 percent higher risk of suffering from hypertension.
This has been demonstrated by a study carried out between the University of Zaragoza and the University of Sao Paulo (Brazil) that has been published in the 'International Journal of Cardiology' and that has used data from more than 5,000 children for its study.
Data of children from 8 countries
The work has reached this conclusion after analyzing the data of an investigation on the Effects on the health of diet and lifestyles collected for two years in 5,221 children between two and 10 years living in Spain, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Cyprus, Estonia, Sweden and Belgium.
In this way, researchers have been able to verify that there is a relationship between hypertension and the time of exposure to television. Specifically, they found that the incidence was 110 per 1,000, which is to say that children who spend two hours a day with television, computers or video games have a 30 percent greater chance of suffering from hypertension problems .
And what do we do against this? The answer is simple and given by the researchers themselves: that children and young people perform physical activity for more than one hour a day and that sedentary activities (such as watching television) do not exceed two hours.
"The figures are worrisome, since lsedentary behaviors are common in childhood and, later, during adulthood", has warned one of the authors of the investigation, Augusto César F. de Morae, who has also indicated that this work has highlighted the need for physical activity, because "increases the rate of oxygenation of the heart and, in turn, lowers blood pressure," he concluded.
In essence, this research comes to give parents one more reason to turn off the television at home and go out with our children. Power your children to do sports and outdoor activities (when time permits) to avoid sedentary life and, thus, ensure that they have a healthy and happy development. Also, avoid watching television during meals.
Angela R. Bonachera
