The children who did not eat in front of the TV at home and for whom TV viewing during meals and snack was novel, actually ate significantly less on the days the lunchtime cartoon was shown compared to the days on which there was no video.

Dr. Lori Francis, assistant professor of biobehavioral health and first author of the recently published paper on the study, "The study shows that TV viewing can either increase or decrease preschool children's food intakes and suggests that when children consistently view TV during meals, TV viewing may distract children from normal fullness cues which can lead to overeating in children as it may in adults."

In their paper, the researchers write, "To promote self-regulation of energy intake in young children, parents and caregivers should be advised against providing opportunities for children to eat during TV viewing."

The results of the study are detailed in, "Does Eating During Television Viewing Affect Preschool Children's Intake?," published in the April issue of the Journal of the American Dietetic Association. The authors are Francis and Dr. Leann L. Birch, distinguished professor of human development and family studies, at Penn State.

Twenty-four children, ages three through five, and their mothers participated in the study. The children were all normal weight, predominately European American and middle class.

On two separate days, the children were served lunch in small groups and also shown a 22-minute video of a cartoon version of Dr. Seuss's Daisy-Head Mayzie, which contains the message that love is more important than fame. On two other days, the children ate lunch together but were not shown the cartoon.

The same lunch was served on
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Contact: Barbara Hale
bah@psu.edu
814-865-9481
Penn State
3-Apr-2006