‘There are so many channels and programmes for kids now, but should I let my eight-month-old watch TV?’

Children and TV

Now you’re baby’s growing into a toddler, you’ll be aware of all the areas of their life that are the subject of keen debate – what they eat, how they sleep, how they play, and, one of the thorniest – should they watch TV.

TV is blamed for all kinds of social ills, from encouraging violence to making us fat and illiterate. There is evidence to show that too much TV can have a bad effect on children, but equally, that if it’s watched selectively, it can also be good fun.

‘Selectively’ is the magic word. TV is linked to problems in kids when it’s watched too much or when it’s on in the background all day.

Top TV tips for your toddler...

• Be in charge of what they watch right from the start. Watch TV with them so you can talk about the programme together, then switch it off
• Choose programmes made for their age group, those with lots of activity for them to copy and the repetition that they love at this age. The CBeebies channel is ideal
• Don’t let them watch more than an hour a day (that will probably be as much as you can stand anyway!)
• Don’t get into the habit of using the TV as a ‘babysitter’ while you catch up on the housework or make a phone call

They’ve never had it so good

There are now more than 20 TV channels just for kids. But those with programmes for the youngest tots, such as Teletubbies (CBeebies), Bear in the Big Blue House (Disney Channel) and Boobah (Nick Jr) haven’t been around that long, so there isn’t yet enough research to show what effect they might have on tiny minds What we do know is that La La, Tutter and Humbah and co’s baby talk and breezy songs don’t help little kids’ language development. But they don’t harm it either, so there’s no reason why they shouldn’t simply watch programmes like these for fun of it.

Balancing act

When they’re old enough to talk, these two little words often come before whatever fabulous toy or scrummy-looking snack they’ve just seen in a TV ad.

In the UK, there are strict rules for ads around children’s TV programmes, though a total ban on junk food advertising was ruled out last year. Many parents would be happy if the rules were more stringent, as in Greece where toy commercials are banned during the day.

Despite the worry about the pester-power effect of ads on impressionable youngsters, under-sevens don’t really recall the specific brands they see in TV commercials. But they do ask for more toys than children who don’t watch much commercial television.

So if you’d prefer your toddler’s first words not to be ‘I want’ then stick with CBeebies, or record other channel’s programmes so that they can watch at a time that suits you, and fast forward through the ads.