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Too Much TV: Toddler Stuck in ‘Thomas the Tank’ World
Boy lives in a Thomas the Tank world
How much television is too much for a toddler? According to the American Academy of Pediatrics, children under the age of 2 shouldn’t be watching any television at all. And for a 3-year-old, one to two hours a day of quality programming is the max. But for one mother, there’s no such thing as too much television. Her little boy is allowed to watch all he wants. And he watches a lot.
3-year-old Max watches up to five hours of television every day. And while he enjoys “Hannah Montana” and “Phineas and Ferb,” his favorite show is the more age-appropriate “Thomas the Tank Engine.” But while that show may be better suited for a kid his age than the Disney stuff, he watches so much of it that he is now stuck in his own little Thomas the Tank world and cannot get out.
According to specialists in California where Max is being treated, his overexposure to television has left him unable to relate to his peers. He rarely speaks to the other children at preschool and instead wanders around “obsessively repeating phrases” from his favorite show.
And while Max’s case may be an extreme example of what can happen when a young child watches too much television, doctors say it is not unique. And poor Max may pay a heavy price for his mother’s inattention and permissiveness with doctors predicting long-term effects on his development and communication skills.
The AAP issued that policy statement regarding children and television back in 2001. So, it’s not like parents don’t know by now that too much television can be harmful to young children. But so many parents continue to ignore that advice and use television as an electronic babysitter.
When I was a child, you couldn’t watch five hours of kid’s television programming every day even if you tried. There was maybe an hour or two of shows after school and some Saturday morning cartoons and that was it.
But I don’t blame Disney, Nickelodeon or any of the other channels that churn out kid’s shows. I blame the parents. I am not anti-television and admit that I myself sometimes plopped my own kid down in front of the boob tube to keep her busy when she was young. And now, at the age of ten, she loves her some Disney Channel.
But just as I did when she was a toddler, I limit how much screen time she gets each day – and that includes the computer screen. Because as long as she’s a kid, I am still in charge.
In that same 2001 AAP policy statement, they referenced a study that found that by the time the average person reaches age 70, he or she will have spent the equivalent of 7 to 10 years watching television. I am sure we could all think of better ways to spend those years.
Image: Jon Ovington/Flickr
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[...] Too Much TV: Toddler Stuck in Thomas the Tank World [...]
Pre-Teen Babysitter - Old Enough? | Strollerderby commented on Oct 04 10 at 2:21 pm[...] Not that I’m blaming anyone, but he gets it all from his father’s side. I admit though, I do try to encourage the lighter side of the force without turning him into this poor child. [...]
Designing The Young Jedi’s Room « MOMnPOP commented on Oct 06 10 at 12:14 amBlack Sheep commented on Oct 04 10 at 4:45 pmHas he been evaluated for autism or another developmental disorder? The article doesn’t say.
Miss Chris commented on Oct 04 10 at 6:44 pmDoesn’t this seem pretty unlikely. Lots of kids watch TV and are still able to interact socially with others, it seems pretty clear that something else is going on with this kid.
Laure68 commented on Oct 04 10 at 11:05 pmI have to agree with the other comments. He does not communicate and obsessively repeats phrases – sounds like classic autism symptoms. The fact that he watches Thomas means that it is Thomas he is obsessed with.
This story is from the Daily Mail, which is known to be a rag. It seems like they are trying to blame Thomas/TV for another issue altogether.
Not saying so much TV is good for a child, but I’m not sure this was the only problem in this case.
Linda commented on Oct 04 10 at 11:49 pmI’m sorry but that sounds like Asperger’s Syndrome, which isn’t CAUSED by televsion. I actually can’t believe people think it’s fine for a 3 year old to watch an hour or two of television a day, let alone five.
jenny tries too hard commented on Oct 05 10 at 3:31 pmI’m with the rest of the peanut gallery. The kid is stimming. Kids with autism or Asperger’s use all kinds of familiar phrases for this, including phrases their parents use when talking to them and phrases from books that are read to them frequently. It’s definitely not good that this little boy is allowed to watch TV all day but it’s not the cause of his problems.
Marj commented on Oct 09 10 at 1:17 pmYeah. Agree with the other commenters. Sounds like sloppy reporting.
justamom commented on Oct 14 10 at 12:30 pmYep, I have an autistic child and they can fixate on certain things – like a specific show or movie – for some parents letting the child watch gives them time to focus on other children or tasks and not letting the child watch causes large tantrums where other children can actually be in danger of being hit by something thrown or hit/kicked by the child himself. Not that it’s right to have him watch t.v. 24/7, but this story does not sounds like the WHOLE story to me.
Diana commented on Feb 22 11 at 9:33 pmHere is the study published in Journal of Developmental & Behavioral Pediatrics (which should have been cited in this and the Daily Mail article in the first place) http://journals.lww.com/jrnldbp/Fulltext/2010/04001/Max__Concern_With_Social_Skills,_Language_and.29.aspx
For all the commenters who’ve mentioned PDD/ASD, check out the third article referring to Max by David M. Snyder, MD
This article also should have mentioned that by April of 2010, “A follow-up on Max: After limiting television time to no more than 2 hours each day, Max now communicates in sentences with a social context and no longer repeats phrases from cartoon shows. His preschool teacher observed increased appropriate play with peers. A developmental assessment by a child psychologist is planned.” was included in the published journal article.
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