Canadian kids spend as much time in front of a screen as adults do at work: study

CTV News 15 January 2015
According to a new Canadian survey, children are spending as much time in front of a screen as adults do each week at work.

A new campaign by Participaction called ‘Make Room To Play,’ aims to raise awareness about the amount of time children are spending in front of a screen – TV, phone, tablet, computer.

According to a survey commissioned for Participaction last month, Canadian children up to age 12 average almost eight hours a day in front of a screen. That works out to almost 40 hours a week.

Participaction president Elio Antunes says, if you don’t believe it, do what he did – audit your kids screen time.

“Conversely, what that means is, only 5 per cent of Canadian kids are actually meeting the Canadian guidelines for physical activity, which is 60 minutes of physical activity every day,” says Antunes.

The implications of this new cultural norm are serious. Kids today have health problems not typically seen until well into adulthood.
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