Healthy Community Coalition promotes alternatives to TV viewing
TV Turn-Off Week (April 21 – 27, 2008)
In an attempt to endorse TV Turn-Off Week, Healthy Community Coalition is working together with the five Franklin County school districts to provide Middle School students and their families alternatives to TV and screen-time viewing.
“The statistics are overwhelming! We live in a world where sitting in front of a screen has become the norm.” Said Lila Haynes, a University of Maine at Farmington practicum student. According to the TV-Turnoff Network the average child watches 28 hours of television per week. Average American youth are spending more time watching television than they are attending school. Over the course of a year the average American child spends 900 hours in school and 1500 hours watching TV. That is equivalent to approximately two months of straight TV! This large amount of time being sedentary is contributing to the numerous adverse health effects we see in children today.
This year the national TV Turn-Off Week is held on the same week as school vacation for the Franklin County schools. “This is a shame because it really will put a damper on what we can do.” Said Madi Faraday, the school nurse at Kingfield Elementary. However, the nurses in MSAD 58 decided to observe the TV Turn-Off Week during April 14 thru 18. Other schools in the county have bulletin boards and flyers up around the schools for students to look at as well as announcements about the various alternatives to sitting in front of a screen.
By limiting or reducing the amount of screen time your children participate in, the healthier and more stimulated they can become. To find out additional information or ways to reduce your TV viewing habit, contact the Healthy Community Coalition at (207) 645-3136 or (800) 525-3136.
TV Turn-Off Week is a national effort supported or endorsed by the American Medical Association, the National Education Association, and the American Academy of Pediatrics. Healthy Community Coalition is an independent, non-profit affiliate of the Franklin Community Health Network, serving Greater Franklin County. For over fourteen years, HCC has offered preventive and educational services aimed at improving the health and well being of people in the community.
