San Francisco (dpa) - Teenagers who watch a lot of television or
spend long hours playing video games run a higher risk for depression
as adults, according to a US study published this week in the
Archives of General Psychiatry.
In the study, which began in 1995, 4,100 adolescents were asked
about their television viewing habits and use of other electronic
media such as video games. None of the participants had symptoms of
depression when the study began.
But seven years later, 308 participants had developed symptoms
consistent with depression, with those reporting more television use
seeing significantly greater odds of developing depression, the study
said.
"In the fully adjusted models, participants had significantly
greater odds of developing depression by follow-up for each hour of
daily television viewed," wrote the authors of the study led by Brian
Primack of the University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine.
"In addition, those reporting higher total media exposure had
significantly greater odds of developing depression for each
additional hour of daily use," the study said.
While Primack noted that the study had not established a direct
chain of causation, the relationship of increased viewing to
depression indicated such a relationship.
According to Primack, television might promote depression because
of its focus on bad news, traumatic events and negative role models.
"You see a lot of depressing events on television and are likely to
internalize them," Primack told US News and World Report.
TV viewing might also come at the expense of social, intellectual
or sporting activities that help guard against depression, while late
night viewing could disrupt sleep patterns that are important to
healthy development, the study said.
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