Screen Media Exposure and Obesity in Children and Adolescents.

Thomas N Robinson, Jorge A Banda, Lauren Hale, Amy Shirong Lu, Frances Fleming-Milici, Sandra L Calvert, Ellen Wartella

Journal: Pediatrics 2017;140(Suppl 2):S97-S101

PMID: 29093041

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Abstract

Obesity is one of the best-documented outcomes of screen media exposure. Many observational studies find relationships between screen media exposure and increased risks of obesity. Randomized controlled trials of reducing screen time in community settings have reduced weight gain in children, demonstrating a cause and effect relationship. Current evidence suggests that screen media exposure leads to obesity in children and adolescents through increased eating while viewing; exposure to high-calorie, low-nutrient food and beverage marketing that influences children's preferences, purchase requests, consumption habits; and reduced sleep duration. Some evidence also suggests promise for using interactive media to improve eating and physical activity behaviors to prevent or reduce obesity. Future interdisciplinary research is needed to examine the effects of newer mobile and other digital media exposures on obesity; to examine the effectiveness of additional interventions to mitigate the adverse effects of media exposures on obesity and possible moderators and mediators of intervention effects; to effectively use digital media interventions to prevent and reduce obesity; and to uncover the mechanisms underlying the causal relationships and interactions between obesity-related outcomes and media content, characteristics, and context.

Address: Stanford Solutions Science Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, California; [email protected].; Lucile Packard Children's Hospital Stanford, Palo Alto, California.; Stanford Solutions Science Laboratory, Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University, Stanford, California.; Program in Public Health, Department of Family, Population and Preventive Medicine, Stony Brook University, Stony Brook, New York.; Department of Communication Studies, College of Arts, Media and Design, and.; Health Technology Laboratory, Department of Health Sciences, Bouvé College of Health Sciences, Northeastern University, Boston, Massachusetts.; Rudd Center for Food Policy and Obesity, University of Connecticut, Hartford, Connecticut.; Children's Digital Media Center, Department of Psychology, Georgetown University, Washington, District of Columbia; and.; Center on Media and Human Development, School of Communication, Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois.

DOI: 10.1542/peds.2016-1758K