- Watching grown-up TV 'makes children more likely to have underage sex'
- The Mail Online - UK
- 06/05/2009 Make a Comment
- Contributed by: The Rooster ( 258 articles in 2009 )
Threat: For every hour children watched post-watershed shows, they were 33 per cent more likely to have sex early, the study found (picture posed by models)
Children who watch television shows for adults are much more likely to become sexually active in their early teens, a new study shows.
The younger they are exposed to post-watershed programmes, researchers say, the sooner they will have sex - and the probability increases the more they watch.
The team observed 754 girls and boys between the ages of six and eighteen, recording their viewing habits over a single weekday and weekend day.
In the second stage of the study, researchers identified when each youngster became sexually active.
Children between six and eight years old who watched grown-up shows were likely to have sex earlier than those who watched less adult-targeted material, they found.
For every hour the youngest group of children watched adult programmes over the two sample days, the chance that they would have sex during early adolescence increased by 33 per cent.
Dr Hernan Delgado, who led the U.S. research team, said: 'Television and movies are among the leading sources of information about sex and relationships for adolescents.
'Our research shows that their sexual attitudes and expectations are influenced much earlier in life.'
The researchers, at the Children's Hospital in Boston, Massachussetts, urged parents to ban television from bedrooms, restrict viewing to no more than one to two hours a day, and to watch and talk about the shows with their children.
Study co-author Dr David Bickham said: 'Children learn from media, and when they watch media with sexual references and innuendos, our research suggests they are more likely to engage in sexual activity earlier in life.'
He warned: 'Children have neither the life experience nor the brain development to fully differentiate between a reality they are moving toward and a fiction meant solely to entertain.
Researchers also found that becoming sexually active in adolescence did not mean the teenager would watch more adult television and movies.
The younger they are exposed to post-watershed programmes, researchers say, the sooner they will have sex - and the probability increases the more they watch.
The team observed 754 girls and boys between the ages of six and eighteen, recording their viewing habits over a single weekday and weekend day.
In the second stage of the study, researchers identified when each youngster became sexually active.
Children between six and eight years old who watched grown-up shows were likely to have sex earlier than those who watched less adult-targeted material, they found.
For every hour the youngest group of children watched adult programmes over the two sample days, the chance that they would have sex during early adolescence increased by 33 per cent.
Dr Hernan Delgado, who led the U.S. research team, said: 'Television and movies are among the leading sources of information about sex and relationships for adolescents.
'Our research shows that their sexual attitudes and expectations are influenced much earlier in life.'
The researchers, at the Children's Hospital in Boston, Massachussetts, urged parents to ban television from bedrooms, restrict viewing to no more than one to two hours a day, and to watch and talk about the shows with their children.
Study co-author Dr David Bickham said: 'Children learn from media, and when they watch media with sexual references and innuendos, our research suggests they are more likely to engage in sexual activity earlier in life.'
He warned: 'Children have neither the life experience nor the brain development to fully differentiate between a reality they are moving toward and a fiction meant solely to entertain.
Researchers also found that becoming sexually active in adolescence did not mean the teenager would watch more adult television and movies.
Source: https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1177870/Watching-grown-TV-makes-children-likely-age-sex.html
1Will not be visible to public.
2Receive notification of other comments posted for this article. To cease notification after having posted click here.
3To make a link clickable in the comments box enclose in link tags - ie.<link>Link</link>.
4To show an image enclose the image URL in tags - ie.<image>https://fredspage.com/box.jpg</image>. Note: image may be resized if too large
To further have your say, head to our forum Click Here
To contribute a news article Click Here
To view or contribute a Quote Click Here