Heart damage: another reason to cut down on children's screen time
Barcelona (PTI): The effects of prolonged screen use during childhood have been extensively studied in recent years.
Evidence indicates that excessive screen time is harmful both to neurological development and socialisation.
This is because, among other things, they cause us to disconnect from our surroundings, leading to very real addictions that often require intervention from a mental health professional.
Additionally, screen use can cause neurocognitive learning disorders at the early stages of personality formation in childhood.
But above all, excessive time spent in front of televisions, video games, mobile phones and tablets during childhood and adolescence leads to a sedentary lifestyle.
In fact, there is already a proven link between overuse of screens and the increase in sedentary lifestyles among children.
Now, a new dimension can be added to all these reasons for limiting the time children spend in front of televisions, video games and mobile phones.
According to a new study, led by Andrew Agbaje at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio and presented at the European Society of Cardiology Congress 2023, sedentary children are at increased risk of heart damage in early adulthood.
In other words, inactivity during infancy may well set the stage for heart attacks and strokes later in life, even if weight and blood pressure are within the normal ranges.
Excessive screen time increases heart weight The research analysed the cumulative effects of sedentary time on the heart, drawing data from Children of the 90s, a landmark multigenerational study that is unique in its breadth and depth of scope.
It tracked the health and lifestyles of 14,500 babies born in 1990 and 1991 into their adult lives.
Of the children included in the study, 766 –55 per cent of them girls and 45 per cent boys– were asked at age 11 to wear a smart watch that monitored their activity for seven days.
At age 15 they were asked to repeat this, and then again at 24. In parallel, an echocardiographical analysis was taken of each subject's left ventricle at ages 17 and 24, which was then adjusted for height, sex, blood pressure, body fat, tobacco use, physical activity and socioeconomic status.
The results indicated that at age 11 the subjects were sedentary for an average of 362 minutes per day. In adolescence (age 15) this increased to 474 minutes per day, and then went up to 531 minutes per day in adulthood (age 24).
Sedentary time increased by an average of 2.8 hours per day over the 13 years of the study. A large amount of this sedentary time was spent in front of screens. `Most seriously, the echocardiography registered an increase in heart weight among young people that correlated directly to time spent being sedentary.
Once they entered adulthood, this increased the likelihood of heart attacks and strokes.
This direct relation between accumulated inactive time and heart damage was independent of body weight and blood pressure.
Tell me how much you moved as a child… By now it is common knowledge that sedentary lifestyles increase the risk of metabolic conditions (such as obesity and type 2 diabetes), neurodegenerative disease and cardiovascular disease in adults.
The new study shows that sedentary behaviour at a very early age –especially unrestricted screen time– may lead to an earlier onset of cardiovascular disease in adulthood.
For this reason, it is of the utmost importance that parents encourage children and adolescents to move around more, and limit the time they spend watching television, or using social media and videogames.
As we have already suggested with regard to premature birth, the list of known, conventional cardiovascular risk factors (smoking, diabetes, hypertension, etc.) should be revised and updated as a result of the study to include the cumulative time spent engaging in sedentary behaviour in childhood.
We should all, from an early age, heed the words of Martin Luther King when he said "If you can't fly, then run. If you can't run, then walk. If you can't walk, then crawl, but whatever you do, you have to keep moving." (The Conversation) FZH
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Karnataka issues nutrition advisory for govt events; recommends millets, healthier options
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Bengaluru (PTI): The Karnataka government on Monday issued a nutrition advisory recommending healthier food and beverage options at meetings, functions, and other official gatherings held in the state.
The advisory has been issued by the Department of Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Services to promote healthy dietary and nutritional habits among officials and staff, noting that food, refreshments and beverages served in government offices and official programmes are "often not aligned with nutrition standards."
The advisory recommends serving snacks such as millet-based, low-fat and low-sugar foods, fresh fruits, vegetable salads, sprouts, roasted nuts and seeds during in-house office meetings and breaks.
Beverages such as green tea, low-fat buttermilk, and locally filtered or boiled water served in glass bottles or steel flasks have also been suggested.
According to the advisory, for larger government events, conferences and exhibitions, departments have been advised to include at least one millet-based item during snacks and a minimum of two millet dishes in meals, along with local cuisine and at least one regional recipe.
It also recommends the use of brown rice instead of white rice, freshly prepared vegetable salads, and fresh fruits or low-sugar fruit juices.
If non-vegetarian food is served, it should consist of well-cooked lean or white meat, the advisory stated.
In eateries operating within government office campuses, the department has recommended millet-based foods, fresh vegetable salads, boiled pulses such as horse gram or chickpeas, and low-fat beverages.
It suggests serving food using reusable metal plates and glasses.
The advisory also recommends avoiding microwave-heated food, industrially processed food, fried snacks, high-fat or heavily spiced dishes, carbonated drinks, high-sugar fruit juices, and alcoholic beverages.
It further discourages serving milk-based tea or coffee and plastic-bottled water during official events.
“Overall, hygiene and cleanliness should be maintained while serving food and water. Local cottage industries, self-help groups, prison kitchens, nutri-gardens and others should be preferred for placing food and beverage orders,” the advisory added.
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