Middle Age Is a Good Time to Turn the Television Off

Robert59

Robert59

Well-known Member
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Now I live in Tennesee. Did live in Michigan.
Researchers aren't sure if the damage is done by watching or sitting.

With the explosion of streaming services on top of cable and satellite and even old-fashioned over-the-air viewing, there's more TV to watch than ever. That might be the problem. Three studies have found middle-age people who watch moderate to high amounts of TV are at greater risk of losing brain function and memory when they get older, Health Day reports. But researchers aren't sure whether the declines are caused by the act of watching television or the act of sitting on the couch for hours.

https://www.newser.com/story/306442/watching-tv-may-slow-the-brain-in-later-years.html
 

The sitting isn't good for your physical health. I'm sure just sitting there not watching anything that makes you have to think too hard can't do much for your brain cells. Maybe the history channel? *Grins*
 
TV, for the most part, is increasingly becoming a waste of time and electricity. On some channels, there are more commercials than the actual show. Quite often, if I feel like taking a nap, all I have to do is plop down in the recliner, and turn the TV on. Rarely do I last more than a few minutes before I'm getting some sleep. We get 250 channels, and probably never watch more than 20 of them.

From a health standpoint, spending hours sitting in front of the TV, daily, is probably one of the Worst things a person can do....especially as we get older.
 

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I have a TV but don't watch television programming. I watch youtube videos and my favorite topics are science, history, and foreign affairs. Once in a while I'll watch a movie or short series on Netflix. Television programming doesn't interest me. The videos I watch are stimulating and informative. Still, I don't spend more than a few hours watching intermittently through the day.
 
Could the content of what they watch have something to do with it? There is an enormous selection of TV programming these days, especially since streaming TV came into being.

We can watch silly sitcoms, shoot-em-ups, inane standup comedians, endless talk shows featuring show biz celebrities, political zealots spewing their poison,, cartoons meant for kids, ugly, violent animated shows, etc.

Or...

There are so many really great shows on TV now, if only there was time to watch them all! Great dramas, intelligent police procedurals, classic love stories, plays by Shakespeare, concerts of every kind of music, thoughtful talk shows, travel programs, political speeches, documentaries about everything in the universe, including shows about the universe, educational programs about how to cook, build, repair, sew, and so on.

I don't think "more TV to watch than ever" is the problem, Robert. If people are losing their brain function, it could be because they are not using their brain, and making poor choices all the time. It isn't the TV itself that is to blame, it might be mental laziness.

Or maybe losing brain function (as in Alzheimer's) has nothing to do with watching TV at all. Maybe watching good shows on TV keeps the brain alert and functioning better! Sitting on a couch all day knitting, or reading, might be just as bad. So maybe it's more about exercise and less about TV watching. Or maybe losing brain function has its basis in the physiology of the brain, and has nothing to do with how we spend our time.
 
Don't know about TV, but I do think it's good for us to talk on these message boards. Some days it seems like it takes my entire brain to formulate sentences that make sense ...or is that senses that make sentences... just how do you spell kat ... drifting off now....
 
Watching netflix, stars, hulu and sling--only see local news on cable, only have tv on after 6 pm
 

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