Disadvantages of Watching Television for Long Hours - Essay Example

Disadvantages of Watching Television for long Hours In recent years, the effects of television on other aspects of humanlife have created a big debate. This debate has stimulated research into the area to find what the situation is really like. Those that love watching television claim that it is a source of entertainment and relaxation. They argue that television provides a good source for entertainment that is affordable since one has to have only the television set to enjoy the programs. Shepard notes the existing connection between watching violent television programs and actual violence in the American society. Since many people especially the youth prefer watching episodes that have violence, this source of entertainment has a negative effect on how they view violence in society. According to Sheppard, an American child sees up to eight thousand murders before completing elementary school, which translates to about 200,000 violent acts by the time that child, is eighteen. There is also a scientific connection between watching violent movies and violence in real life where scientists have confirmed that there is a relation between watching aggressive acts and performing such acts in real life. Therefore, although television is an entertainment source, watching it for a long time has becomes bad when one begins imitating what they have seen on television. Those who argue that television is a good source of relieving stress claim that it enables them to forget the problems they have in life and be able to enjoy themselves. Those with this view clam that television does not only entertain, but it also offers them a chance to find something to laugh about after they have encountered a stressful day in their regular activities. However, this cannot be true since instead of relieving the stress one has, television creates a distraction where you are transferred from the realities of life to a world of fantasy and imaginations. What is presented to the viewer is mere acting that makes you forget the problems for a while but they are still there. According to Blesi, Wise, and Kelley-Arney (74) watching television is part of withdrawal behavior where an individual avoids dealing with an issue that is related to a painful or difficult situation. This implies that those who watch television for a long period are escapists who do not want to deal with the realities that come with their real life and instead choose to watch programs on television some of which presents ideal situations where everything is okay and people are happy. Such individuals will not give themselves a chance to go past the issue that is stressing them since they sped the time for self-reflections on television instead of spending such time analyzing the situation as it is and proactively coming up with possible solutions. Although those who watch television for long hours claim that it’s a leisure activity or among their hobbies, watching television wastes time as a person stays for a long time glued to the television set. Long hours of television viewing prevent an individual from engaging in other processes that will add more benefits. According to Sheppard (106), an average of six hours and forty-seven minutes are spent watching television daily in USA which translate to those of age sixty five having spent up to nine years watching television. Nine years can be spent doing many important things in life. One can earn a lot of money if engaged in economic activities. The time could also be spent undertaking an educational or vocational training that will be more beneficial to the individual as opposed to spending that time watching television. Although it true that watching television is a leisure activity, spending many hours on the sofa set can cause weight gain. Edelstein and Sharlin (91) notes television contributes to weight gain since it reduces physical activities, increases calories as one consumes more and the level of resting metabolism is low for such individuals. According to Nonas and Foster (195), the amount of calorie intake for both adults and children increase with every hour spent in front of the television set. Such statistics means that those who spent more time in front of the television set gain more weight and have increased risk of developing obesity. Since the existence of association between obesity and cardiovascular diseases is clear (Williams & Fruhbeck 287), those who choose long hours of television viewing should look for other past time activities that will not put their health at risk. Continued reliance on long hours of television as a leisure activity will make such viewers susceptible to diseases like heart attacks and stroke, which will make them, die younger. It will be pointless to spend long hours on activities that increases the chance of dying early when there are many activities that one can enjoy while at the same time increase their life expectancy like walking or engaging in sports. Those that oppose spending of long hours watching television claim that it prevents quality family interactions among members of such family. While those who watch television for long hours together with other family members might argue that it brings them together, this may not be true since for the whole time spent are watching, those members might not even be interacting with each other. Television audience requires multitasking since it calls for the viewer to listen, watch, and at the same time analyze the situation as it happens on the screen. Such multitasking requires the individual to concentrate on the screen so that they do not miss anything. In such a scenario, it becomes difficult to for those watching to engage in meaningful conversations. Even if it were possible to have a conversation while at the same time hearing and seeing what is going on the television screen, it would not be appropriate to make important family decisions while watching television since those in discussion will need to analyze the situation in the family keenly before making a decision. A family decision that might affect the future of the family will have to be made through careful deliberations and long hours of consultations. This time might not be available if one member is glued to the television set (Berns 302). There are those who see television as a source of educative information that expand their knowledge on various issues in the world. Such people site discovery channels and other channels that focus on technology, politics, food, and diet as being educative. Although such channels might contribute to literacy levels of the viewers, children and adolescents who spent long hours on television whether watching this educative channels or any other program pay less attention to their class work. Such students perform dismally in school since they do not spent enough time studying when they are out of school. Parents should regulate the amount of hours that children spent watching television so that they dedicate most of their free time to their studies. Television channels that depict violence and explicit contents should also be censored to protect the children from accessing such contents (Drotz 248). In conclusion, television is an important tool in society as it offers entertainment, education and acts as a leisure activity. However, television has been found to contribute to other negative factors in society like violence. Long hours of television viewing have health risks due to the inactiveness of the viewer. Family interaction is also hampered as people concentrate on the television set. It is however advisable to regulate the amount of hours one watches the television so that other important activities can take place. Work Cited Shepard, Jon . Cengage Advantage Books: Sociology. Stamford, CT: Cengage Learning, 2009.Print Blesi, Michelle, Wise, Barbara and Kelley-Arney, Cathy. Medical Assisting: Administrative and Clinical Competencies: Administrative and Clinical Competencies. Stamford, CT :Cengage Learning, 2011.Print. Berns, Roberta . Child, family, school, community: Socialization and support. Stamford, CT : Cengage Learning, 2011.Print. Edelstein, Sari, and Sharlin, Judith. Life cycle nutrition: An evidence-based approach. Sudbury, MA: Jones & Bartlett Learning, 2009.Print. Nonas, Cathy and Foster, Gary eds. Managing obesity: a clinical guide. American Dietetic Association, 2009.Print. Williams, Gareth, and Fruhbeck, Gema eds. Obesity: science to practice. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley, 2009.Print. Drotz, Keeley. The Poisoning of Our Children. TGBG Nutrition Publishing, 2012.Print. Read More