(NaturalNews) Toddlers who watch television are significantly more likely to have poor health and poor educational performance by age 10, according to a study conducted by researchers from the University of Montreal and published in the Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine.

At the age of 10, children who had watched more TV as youngsters were significantly more likely to be rated by their teachers as having lower levels of classroom engagement and poorer performance in math. They were also less likely to be active and more likely to drink more soft drinks and have a higher body mass index.

Read the article on NaturalNews.com

Kids who spend more time outside — and away from the television set — are less likely to develop myopia, the inability to see things clearly at a distance.

The new report, from researchers in Boston, doesn’t determine whether too much indoor activity actually causes poor eyesight. And even if it does, researchers haven’t pinpointed what the exact mechanism might be.

Read the original article on eHealthandWellness.

A review released today, which analyzed 173 strong research papers and nearly three decades of research, finds that 80 percent of studies agree that heavy media exposure increases the risk of harm to children, including obesity, smoking, sex, drug and alcohol use, attention problems and poor grades.

Some of the links are very strong. 93 percent of studies found that children with greater media exposure have sex earlier. Authors say the soundest studies are those linking media use with obesity.

The review provides overwhelming evidence of the importance of limiting children's use of media, and teaching them to critically evaluate the ever-growing volume of text, images and sounds with which they are bombarded. Read the original article on Mercola.com blog.