This news flash about bedroom televisions and increased weight in kids did not surprise me. I have never been a supporter of kids having a tv in their room. All it does is encourage a sedentary lifestyle in the comfort of their bed. In fact, my ideal is to only have a tv in a room that requires going up or down stairs to get to it!
I have a friend whose husband is a pediatrician. He believes that a child’s bedroom should only be a place to sleep. Although I like that idea, and while my kids don’t spend a ton of time in their bedrooms (besides sleeping), I do like the idea of them studying/doing homework in there. And sometimes it’s nice for them to have a place to go with friends. My daughter is a hoarder, I mean collector, so you can imagine what her room looks like. But neither of them has a television in their room. And I hope we keep it that way.
And then there are the iPods and cell phones. Maybe it comes down to implementing “mandatory physical activity,” where they have to go outside and play. Or they can clean the house – their choice!