“You watch television to turn your brain off and you work on your computer when you want to turn your brain on.” — Steve Jobs, co-founder of Apple Computer and Pixar, in Macworld Magazine, February 2004

Few days back I went to pick up my friends little girl from the child care center. I was shocked watching those little young children in front of the television set, watching babies and toddlers educational TV shows. I wondered, if there’s any age limit for kids “media watching”. Are there any benefits of those satellite television shows aimed at little boys and girls? Are those “Cartoon TV Shows” or “Kids Comedy Shows” helping our kids to become “Smart kids”.Whether its a Cable TV or Satellite TV or free to air television, all of them are filled with television programming aimed at young babies to toddlers to teenagers. It does prove that there is a market for young children television and TV stations are making money. The question that still remains unresolved is “How is your child been affected by watching television?”. Consider these findings from a study conducted by the Kaiser Family Foundation:

For children under the age of 3:

More than seven in 10 (72%) of children under the age of 3 watch TV every day and nearly half of them watch videos or DVD’s every day. Most parents (95%) of these under 3 year olds who watch TV every day say they are in the same room with their child while they are watching TV either all or most of the time. 90% of all infants and toddlers have watched TV before the age of 3.

For children over the age of 3:

On average, toddlers and young children spend between 2 to 4 hours a day in front of the screen media. In most of the cases it is more than the time spent playing outside and other physical and mental activities. 99% know how to turn the Television on 85% turn on the TV by themselves 79% ask for their favorite videos and television shows Since the TV started ruling our lives there has been flood of research on how it affect us in many different aspects of our lives. In the last two decades there have been a great increase in studies on affects of watching TV on kids. In the last decade even the infants and the toddlers are getting their fair share of research, since the arrival of programming for infants and toddlers. Our busy lives make these programs our simple choice because it buys us the time to do things around the house or to have some “me time”.

Affects of TV watching for the children under the age of 3

Two-thirds of infants and toddlers watch TV an average of 2 hours a day. In 1999 the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) recommended that kids under 2 years old not watch any TV. Researchers at University of Washington in Seattle have carried out the study and found infants vocalize less and hear fewer words from nearby adults when the TV is on, which in turn affects their cognitive development. For the study, researchers equipped 329 infants, aged between 2 and 48 months, with lightweight recorders that captured every noise they heard in a 24-hour period. Then, a computer program determined whether each sound came from the infant, an adult or the television. The analysis showed that for every hour of television an infant is exposed to hear 770 fewer words from adults, on average a 7 per cent reduction. Infants watching TV also utter fewer “googoos” and “gagas” and interact less with adults than kids whose parents use the off switch more enthusiastically. The newborn brain is very much a work in progress. All that cognitive stimulation is critical to the underlying architecture that’s developing. Every word that babies hear, and every time they hear it, is extremely important. In fact, this finding is backed up by observations made by a team at the University of Massachusetts, which found that infants exposed to television hear 20 percent fewer words from their parents during each hour of programming they watch. Most of this infant programming and DVD’s, claiming to promote parent-child interaction, don’t really work. Best advise to all the new parents is to minimize exposure of TV during the first two years of your child. TV and other electronic media can get in the way of exploring, playing, and interacting with parents and others, which encourages learning and healthy physical and social development. Here is another two studies proving toddlers have difficulty translating the message from TV to the real life. First study is by G.L. Troseth and J.S. DeLoache. In these experiments, two-year-olds were shown videos of experimenters hiding objects in a room. Then the toddlers were allowed into the room and told to find the object. Accuracy ranged from 44 percent to 25 percent, despite the fact that there were only from four to six possible hiding places in the room. Their performance was no better than if they had simply searched the room at random, with no video to help them. Many toddlers did seem to look in the right spot after watching the first video, but if the task was repeated with a different hiding place, they simply returned to the original spot, ignoring the new video evidence. In a second experiment, the researcher hid a stuffed toy Snoopy in a separate room from the toddler, then either told the child where the toy was hidden in person, or on TV, before letting him or her into the room to search for the toy. Again, there were four possible hiding places. Once again, being told in person resulted in significantly better performance. As before, the TV-watchers got worse over time. Clearly the toddlers can understand the verbal descriptions of the objects, but somehow they don’t get the message on TV. these experiments show that toddlers don’t have true mental representations of scenes. Instead, they rely on direct experience. So while toddlers can understand what’s going on on TV, they don’t think about what they see on TV the same way older kids and adults do. They don’t connect it back to the real things they encounter in their world, so they can’t learn from TV. Whatever it is your toddler gets from watching TV, these researchers say, it’s not learning.

Affects of TV watching for the children over the age of 3

Kids between the age of 3 and 6 watch an average of about 2 hours of screen media a day, primarily TV and videos or DVD’s. Kids and teens between the age of 8 to 18 years, spend nearly 4 hours a day in front of a Television screen and almost 2 additional hours on the computer (outside of schoolwork) and playing video games. Don’t forget the time spend on watching television on the internet. As kids get older, too much screen time can interfere with activities such as being physically active, reading, doing homework, playing with friends, and spending time with family. Of course, television, in moderation, can be a good thing: Preschoolers can get help learning the alphabet on public television, grade schoolers can learn about wildlife on nature shows, and parents can keep up with current events on the evening news. No doubt that TV can be an excellent educator and entertainer. But despite its advantages, too much television can be detrimental:

Children who consistently spend more than 4 hours per day watching TV are more likely to be overweight or obese.

Kids who watch violent acts are more likely to show aggressive behavior but also fear that the world is scary and that something bad will happen to them.

TV characters often show risky behaviors, such as smoking and drinking, and also reinforce gender-role and racial stereotypes.

That’s why it’s so important for you to monitor the content of TV programming and set viewing limits to ensure that your kids don’t spend too much time watching TV.

Teaching Good TV Habits

Here are some practical ways to make TV-viewing more productive in your home:

Limit the number of TV-watching hours:

Stock the room in which you have your TV with plenty of other non-screen entertainment (books, kids’ magazines, toys, puzzles, board games, etc.) to encourage kids to do something other than watch the tube.

Keep TVs out of bedrooms.

Turn the TV off during meals.

Don’t allow kids to watch TV while doing homework.

Television is a privilege:

Treat TV as a privilege. Watching TV has to be earned its not a right. Establish and enforce family TV viewing rules, such as TV is allowed only after chores and homework are completed.

Try a weekday ban:

Schoolwork, sports activities, and job responsibilities make it tough to find extra family time during the week. Record weekday shows or save TV time for weekends and you’ll have more family togetherness time to spend on meals, games, physical activity, and reading during the week.

Set a good example by limiting your own TV viewing:

Check the TV listings and program reviews ahead of time for programs your family can watch together (i.e., developmentally appropriate and nonviolent programs that reinforce your family’s values). Choose shows that foster interest and learning in hobbies and education (reading, science, etc.).

Preview programs before your kids watch them:

Come up with a family TV schedule that you all agree upon each week. Then, post the schedule in a visible area (e.g., on the refrigerator) so that everyone knows which programs are OK to watch and when. And make sure to turn off the TV when the “scheduled” program is over instead of channel surfing.

Watch TV together:

If you can’t sit through the whole program, at least watch the first few minutes to assess the tone and appropriateness, then check in throughout the show. Talk to kids about what they see on TV and share your own beliefs and values. If something you don’t approve of appears on the screen, you can turn off the TV, then use the opportunity to ask thought-provoking questions such as, “Do you think it was OK?”  Talk to other parents about their TV-watching policies and kid-friendly programs they’d recommend.

Offer fun alternatives to television:

If your kids want to watch TV but you want to turn off the tube, suggest that you all play a board game, start a game of hide and seek, play outside, read, work on crafts or hobbies, or listen and dance to music. The possibilities for fun without the tube are endless — so turn off the TV and enjoy the quality time together.

Some resources to check out:

Kaiser Family Foundation’s report on children watching tv
Cognitive Daily: Are toddlers incapable of learning from TV?

It has been proven in many researches that on an average we use only 1/6th of our brain. At the chemical level, food is the brain’s primary link to its environment and to its evolution. What we eat affects the brain chemicals. This change in the brain chemistry than influences our mood, behavior, the thought processes and the emotional reactions. More we can find out about the food and brain connections, better dietary decisions we can make to enhance our brain performance. With the help of “brain training” and “brain exercises” and the combination of proper “brain food” and “brain nutrition”, we can dramatically improve a human brain to perform a lot better than any average human brain. Improved brain performance is not only good for adults but will help kids becoming smarter.

What’s in the brain?

About 2/3rd of human brain is full of fat. Its not just any fats but they are very specialized fats. One of the most common fatty acids is oleic acid, which is also the most abundant fatty acid in human milk and in our diet. Mono saturated oleic acid is the main component of olive oil as well as the oils from almonds, pecans, macadamias, peanuts, and avocados. These fats are composed in myelin which is the protective sheath that covers communicating neurons. The membranes of neurons are composed of a thin double-layer of fatty acid molecules, these layers allow oxygen, glucose (blood sugar), and the micro nutrients as their food to function.

Brain food

To build brain cells we need two essential fatty acids. Our body does not produce them, which means we have to get them from the foods that we eat.

• The first essential fatty acid we need is Alpha-linolenic acid (ALA). ALA is the foundation of the “omega-3″ family of fatty acids. Food sources of omega-3 include flax seeds, chia seeds, walnuts, sea vegetables, and green leafy vegetables.
• The second essential fatty acid we need is Linoleic acid (LA). LA is the foundation of the “omega-6″ family of fatty acids. Food sources of omega-6 include cold-pressed sunflower, safflower, corn, and sesame oils.

Since the time of birth, children’s brain keeps developing, consumption of information and knowledge is at a very high rate during the early years. During this period good “health and nutrition” and proper brain food will help them to develop brain power and brain health for the future. Three-quarters of a infant’s energy goes straight to the brain. DHA (docosahexaenoic acid) and AA (arachidonic acid) are both crucial to the optimal development of the brain and eyes. During pregnancy the mother supplies the developing fetus with these fatty acids, and she continues to provide this important brain food to her infant through breast milk. A study published by American Journal of Clinical Nutrition have found that ” DHA was the likely breast milk nutrient that provided the improved academic outcome experienced by breast-fed children. Mother’s milk is high in DHA, and children who receive adequate amounts of DHA were shown to have higher IQs, as well as better vision than children who didn’t get enough DHA.”

Consumption of fish during pregnancy may also be beneficial for your babies brain according to a research published in Lancet in February, 2007. But in most countries doctors prescribe to stay away from the seafood because of the presence of methyl mercury in the fish. At the same time fish also contains omega-3 fatty acids which are very essential to the baby’s brain development. Parental advice is play it safe and take omega 3 fatty acids in the form of pills. From the health food shops you can get high strength odorless fish oil, fish oil supplements or fish oil capsules.

We know now that our brain functions on the good fat. In modern world our brain is going through the biggest shock of its life time of centuries. Most of the junk food we consume is full of TFA (trans fatty acids). TFA’s are not natural, they are man made and instead of helping our brains TFA’s are damaging our brain cells. TFA’s are known to disrupt brain communications. Avoid eating junk food. Now we know what we eat affects our brain. Lets look at the fresh fruits and vegetables. Most of the fresh food and vegetables that we buy are not organic they are full of chemicals through fertilizers and pesticides. When these chemicals are digested in our body some of them do make their way to the human brain. This can cause chemical imbalance in our brain and cause several illnesses. We can not completely avoid them as the structure of the market place. Try to buy the organic fruit and vegetables and don’t forget to wash them because they do get sprayed with chemicals to keep them fresh from the farm to the supermarket. Deficiencies or excesses of certain vitamins or minerals can damage nerves in the brain, causing changes in memory, limiting problem-solving ability, and impairing brain function. Scientists have just begun to understand how changes in particular nutrients alter the brain and how these neural changes then affect intelligence, mood, and the way people act. Always consult with a health care professional before starting a diet or nutritional supplement program. Small changes in diet can have large effects on our health.

Brain training exercises

Just like we do physical exercises to keep our body’s fit, we need to do brain exercises to stimulate our brain and keep it fit. We can not physically message our brain but we can stimulate it with the mind exercises. There are many brain training software’s available in the market for kids as well as adults. Right brain exercises are known to increasing brain power, stimulate brain cells and help brain development. Listening and playing music, playing board and puzzle games are good ways to start kids brain activities.

Here are some online free brain game sites for adults as well as kids.

• Brain Gym

• Brain Metrix

• Braingle

• Sharp Brain

• Mini Clip

Do you nag your kids for studies, cleaning the house, doing the dishes, behaving properly, putting their toys away and the nagging list goes on? Nag or not to nag kids is a big question doing rounds for a very long time. Every few years some study come up in the support of the other. Just last week a study of 3450 students from Sydney university, published in Teachers College Record, a US journal, came up with the conclusion that nagging does work. Every child gets influenced by two factors in life, first one is parents and teachers and the second one is their friends and role models. Influence of parents and teachers has a significant impact on a kids academic life while friends and peers has a big say in their social and emotional well being.

Now the question arises how much nagging is necessary? Lets go back a generation and ask how much nagging did your parents do? Did that nagging help you in what you are today? Some of you may not agree with their nagging. Just like the studies conducted in the different countries do not agree with each other on the topic. As parents all we want for our kids is to give them the best, give them everything that we didn’t get ourselves when we were kids. Therefore we have to set up a limit to nagging and strike a balance so that the child gets the best out of it and does not stress out.

Lets start with the reality, nagging does work and I completely agree with the study of Sydney university researcher Andrew Martin. “Parents and teachers who might feel powerless during adolescence have a bigger influence on academic motivation than they think – sometimes up to three times the impact of peers”, Martin said. But I have to add, it works only if done in a right way. For example take all those advertisements that are targeted towards our kids, during kids programming on the television. These companies have spent a lot of money on the research to get that one advertisement right. That advert goes straight to their head and they want to have that product, its the result of their continuous nagging and hitting the right spot with the kids. That’s right, if we want our kids to listen to us and do as we say we have to come up with the strategy that they learn, nothing comes for free. For example, if they finish their homework they can go out and play with their friends. You may have to nag few times but than they know unless they have finished their homework they can not do what they want. Same can apply to kids cleaning their room, helping you in the house and everything else. Remember kids have a lot of energy and lots of activities to do, so through nagging you can work around in a way that they get what they want within limits and you get what’s best for them. Magic rule “Do not make FALSE promises, STICK to whatever you have PROMISED”. These are innocent kids and if you play with their innocence they will never forget it and you will be in their bad books and soon they will stop listening to you.

Sometimes make the exceptions when they are really nice to you and they are rushing around to get everything done because something really important to them is happening or about to happen. They will really appreciate that and forget all the nagging you do. Take some time out to sit down with them and try to explain them why do you have to nag, try to explain to them what are the importance of things that they do. This way your nagging will work without stressing the child out. My personal experience tells me that nagging is very important in the early childhood, after that kids learn if they do this than they will get to do that. If they can create an interest in the studies in the early childhood that means less nagging from you when they are growing up.

Here’s a really cool game for all the parents. Get a calender. There are 365 days a year. Say every day has a value of 25 cents. Tell your kids you will mark the calender if they have been good or bad. The number of days they have been good will be equivalent to the amount of 25 cents that they have earned for their Christmas presents or their Birthday presents. Do not forget to total up at the end of each month, so the kids know how much they have earned. It will be a great motivation for them because the can see what they are earning for being good. Have fun.

I will soon post an article about the influence of friends on your child.

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From the day we are born till the end of life we are in relationships with many people. To deal with these relationships in flawless ways we need to master the social skills. Social skills are the basic building blocks of our life from playground to school and in our adult life. Social skills need to be taught and learned. In fact we learn or refine one or another social skill on everyday of our life. Unless parents learn how to build a loving, stable and peaceful relationship with each other, they probably won’t build a good relationship with their children. Developing social skills in the kids will start from the very early stage and it will include:

Listening

Being patient

Respecting themselves, others and things around them

Being cooperative and team player

Sharing and taking turns

Caring and helping others

Good and positive communication

Conflict resolution

Participation and focusing on the task

Learning from failure

Adjusting to the differences of society

Analyzing the difference between good and bad

Social skills are lifelong survival skills. If we dont teach kids the right skills from the beginning, as they grow up they may find themselves out of place, many times in life. It can also make a difference with your child liking and adjusting to the school, new friends, new classes or dropping out from school.