According to the American Academy of Pediatrics (AAP) guidelines children under age 2 should not watch TV, DVDs or videotapes, computers, or video games at all.

During the first 2 years, a critical time for brain development, TV can get in the way of exploring, learning, and spending time interacting and playing with parents and others, which helps young children develop the skills they need to grow cognitively, physically, socially, and emotionally.

The following are the effects of Television, Videos and Computers on Child Development

TV disadvantages speech and language development
- Movement actually assists a child's speech development.
- TV viewing requires no verbal response and prevents real conversations happening.

TV effects eye development
- Viewing reduces eyes to single focus.
- Eyes continue to develop until age nine.
- Children need continual movement of eyes to build eye muscle.
- To succeed in reading, eye movement needs to be rhythmical and controlled.

TV effects brain development
- During viewing alpha brain waves are produced, as in sleep, creating a trance like state, resulting in receiving
information without analysis or selectivity. (Do you find it hard to turn the TV off?)
- TV viewing prolongs use of right side hemisphere (the non verbal side). Skills for reading, handwriting and logic
require a balanced use of the left side.
- Children need to be active to learn, they need sensations of touch and movement to have meaningful input.
- TV viewing produces passivity, weakening will, poor concentration and it also suppresses initiative.

TV effects moral development and creates stress in children.
- TV creates tension in children as they make attempts to differentiate between truth and fiction, then they give up as
adrenalin is pumped around their bodies.
- Results in a failure to appreciate and be sensitive towards others, the first step in moral development.
- Children are overburdened with information, left knowing more than they can understand or digest.
- All this leads to poor concentration, aggression and hyperactive behaviour.

TV leaves them feeling dull and apathetic,stealing their playtime and imagination, leaving their head full of vivid
"unreal" pictures that stay for the night and longer.
So, as you can see that it is not the programme, it is the watching!

To Teach Your Child Good TV Habits, here are some practical ways you can make TV viewing more productive in your home:

-> Limit the number of TV-watching hours.Stock the room in which you have your TV with plenty of other non-screen
entertainment (books, kids' magazines, toys, puzzles, board games, etc.) to encourage your child to do something other
than watch the tube. Keep TVs out of your child's bedroom.

-> Turn the TV off during meals.Don't allow your child to watch TV while doing homework.

-> Treat TV as a privilege that your child needs to earn, not a right to which he or she is entitled.

-> Tell your child that TV viewing is allowed only after chores and homework are completed.

-> Try a weekday ban. Schoolwork, sports activities, and job responsibilities make it tough to find extra family time during the week.

-> Record weekday shows or save TV time for weekends, and you'll have more family togetherness time to spend on meals, games, physical activity, and reading during the week. Set a good example by limiting your own television viewing.

-> Check the TV listings and program reviews ahead of time for programs your family can watch together (i.e., developmentally appropriate and nonviolent programs that reinforce your family's values).

-> Choose shows, says the AAP, that foster interest and learning in hobbies and education (reading, science, etc.). Preview programs before your child watches them.

-> Come up with a family TV schedule that you all agree upon each week. Then, post the schedule in a visible area
(i.e., on the refrigerator) somewhere around the house so that everyone knows which programs are OK to watch and when.
And make sure to turn off the TV when the "scheduled" program is over, instead of channel surfing until something gets
your or your child's interest.

-> Watch TV with your child. If you can't sit through the whole program, at least watch the first few minutes to assess the
tone and appropriateness, then check in throughout the show.

-> Talk to your child about what he or she sees on TV and share your own beliefs and values. If something you don't approve
of appears on the screen, you can turn off the TV, then use the opportunity to ask your child thought-provoking questions
such as, "Do you think it was OK when those men got in that fight? What else could they have done? What would you have done?" Or, "What do you think about how those teenagers were acting at that party? Do you think what they were doing was wrong?" If certain people or characters are mistreated or discriminated against, talk about why it's important to treat everyone
equal, despite their differences. You can use TV to explain confusing situations and express your feelings about difficult
topics (sex, love, drugs, alcohol, smoking, work, behavior, family life). Teach your child to question and learn from what
he or she views on TV.

-> Talk to other parents, your child's doctor, and your child's teachers about their TV-watching policies and kid-friendly
programs they'd recommend.

-> Offer fun alternatives to television. If your child wants to watch TV, but you want him or her to turn off the tube, suggest that you and your child play a board game, start a game of hide and seek, play outside, read, work on crafts or hobbies, or listen and dance to music. The possibilities for fun without the tube are endless - so turn off the TV and enjoy the quality time you'll have to spend with your child.