Mind & Mood
Too much TV might be bad for your brain
Research we're watching
- Reviewed by Toni Golen, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing; Contributor
Excessive TV-watching — defined as four or more hours daily — is associated with a greater risk of developing brain-based disorders such as dementia, depression, and Parkinson's disease, a new analysis suggests.
The study, published online Nov. 3, 2023, by the International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, looked at data on more than 473,000 adults ages 39 to 72 enrolled in the UK Biobank. Researchers tracked participants until either they died; they were diagnosed with dementia, Parkinson's, or depression; or the study ended (2018 for some participants, 2021 for others). Participants reported how many hours they spent aside from work either exercising, using a computer, or watching TV.
Compared with people who watched TV for less than an hour each day, participants who reported watching four or more hours of TV daily had a 28% higher risk of dementia, a 35% greater risk of depression, and a 16% higher risk of Parkinson's disease. But people who reported a moderate amount of computer use—30 to 60 minutes per day—appeared to have lower risks of those three conditions compared with participants who reported the lowest levels of computer use. The study was observational, meaning it couldn't prove that excessive TV watching in itself causes these problems, is an early sign of them, or results from other factors contributing to these disorders.
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About the Author
Maureen Salamon, Executive Editor, Harvard Women's Health Watch
About the Reviewer
Toni Golen, MD, Editor in Chief, Harvard Women's Health Watch; Editorial Advisory Board Member, Harvard Health Publishing; Contributor
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