We Can! Reduce Screen Time
and Live Healthier Lives
~ National Heart,
Lung and Blood Institute introduces the We Can! program
as a resource to help during TV-Turnoff Week, April
24-30 and beyond ~
April 2008
Washington, D.C. - Do your
children spend too much time in front of the screen?
If they spend on average more than two hours a day,
the answer is yes! Studies have linked hours of TV watching
to increased risk of being overweight or obese. Conversely,
researchers have found that children and adolescents
who reduce the amount of screen time have lower body
mass index (BMI) and less body fat compared to peers.
April 21 to 27 is TV-Turnoff
Week, a nationwide campaign to raise public awareness
about the negative impact of excessive television watching
and to encourage children and adults to watch less television
in order to promote healthier lives and communities.
It is the perfect time to take steps to wean your family
from the screen and adapt a healthier way of life.
The We Can! (Ways to
Enhance Children's Activity and Nutrition) program of
the National Institutes of Health's National Heart,
Lung and Blood Institute (NHLBI) has resources for parents,
teachers, and community organizations to help children
and families reduce the amount of time spent watching
television, playing video games, and participating in
other leisurely "screen time" activities.
A public awareness program
to prevent childhood obesity, We Can! was developed
by NHLBI and is being promoted in collaboration with
three other NIH Institutes. In addition to ideas for
parents to turn screen time into active time, the program
offers proven lessons for youth and parents to adapt
healthier lifestyles and is being adopted by schools
and organizations in more than 77 communities nationwide
and in Canada.
Acting U.S. Surgeon General
Dr. Steven K. Galson is the nation's top public health
physician. He began his career as an epidemiological
investigator at the Center's for Disease Control, and
has held senior level positions at several government
agencies.
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