Can the 'electronic revolution' affect children's health?

CHILDHOOD OBESITY HAS EMERGED as a public health concern, particularly in Western societies. It is suggested that excessive screen-viewing--through television, computer, videos, electronic games, etc.-is a major factor contributing to the increased risk of obesity in children. These electronic devices can very well have a negative impact on their health.

In the Western world at least, from the day they start to walk until they enter college and even beyond, children are bombarded with electronic devices and media-watching, which can lead to their adoption of a new sedentary lifestyle, devoid of exercise necessary to offset the very rich caloric diets prevalent in today's societies. As diets become "westernized", this phenomenon is creeping into developing countries as well. Children are, therefore, likely to be overweight in their adult life.

Boys and girls begin watching television at a very early age, more so perhaps in developing countries than in affluent societies. For example, at an airport in the United States, I saw children gathered around an electric receptacle, munching on junk food while charging their iPods and other electronic devices, and would not allow a businessman access to it. In Cairo, Egypt, one cannot escape seeing satellite dishes on top of buildings, mushrooming not only on rooftops but also protruding out of apartment balconies. Children at home are either watching television, playing video games and play-stations, or talking on cellular phones and sending text messages. I find few children playing in the park, walking on the beach or participating in active sports. I call this the rise of electronic advancement and the fall of outdoor exercise--a new world order of children.

What does this mean to their health? A healthy human body must be exposed to a reasonable amount of exercise, particularly during a child's development. The lack of exercise in one's daily life, coupled with a rich caloric dietary intake, can result in a myriad of diseases that are not immediately evident. But the blueprint would certainly be drawn for future health disasters, especially for children whose parents are already afflicted with certain diseases, such as cardiovascular anomalies, diabetes mellitus, metabolic syndrome, etc.

Indeed, lifestyle is very important in developing acceptable health outcomes. Unfortunately, the "electronic revolution" does not help induce a healthy lifestyle and will have a negative impact on children's health. Those who are not subjected to adequate exercise are expected to develop cardiovascular and/or cerebrovascular risk factors, thus impacting their morbidity and mortality from health complications. They will gain abnormal body weight and may develop a high body mass index (BMI), as well as atherosclerosis, hypertension and possibly chronic heart failure. The prognosis for children whose genetic make-up already contains these health risk factors could be quite alarming.

There are numerous publications on the effects of sedentary lifestyle on the development of health-risk outcomes, as shown in the United States Library of Medicine's database. Of note is the journal Obesity Research, where a study of 872 Swiss children in first to third grades revealed a strong association between playing video games, including watching television, and childhood obesity. Children of foreign nationalities living in Switzerland were about twice as likely to be obese than Swiss children, because they watched more television and had less physical activity. This suggests that the disparity in obesity prevalence may be partially amenable to culturally related factors.

The study also provided very strong evidence that obesity was inversely associated with physical activity. A child's genetic make-up is not modifiable, but, when possible, one should change the modifiable risk factors, such as lifestyle. Because obesity is difficult to treat, prevention during childhood is an essential component of the efforts to combat this epidemic. It is, therefore, imperative that parents limit the time children are spending in sedentary activity and encourage them to partake in exercise and/or any sports activities.

There are plenty of silent diseases which take years to develop. Parents should not predispose their children to long-term developing anomalies, but should coach them to eat healthy and exercise. Children today are taking interest in how their body looks--with exercise and proper nutrition, they can certainly aspire to look great, feel good about themselves and develop a high self-esteem. We will not be able to avoid the advent of the electronic "revolution" as it is here to stay. By monitoring and managing how children grow up, and providing reasonable time for them to use electronics, we can be confident that they can enjoy many years of productive life with minimal debilitating diseases.

Tarek el Ackad is a cardiovascular clinical pharmacologist. He is a fellow of the American College of Clinical Pharmacology and a member of the American Heart Association and the American Society of Hypertension, to name a few.

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