Over the last decade or so educational programming aimed at very young children has exploded. Parents and grandparents are snapping up these programs in an attempt to give their little ones every advantage. The question few parents stop to ask is, "Do these programs actually help?" More importantly, no one seems to ask whether they can actually hurt.

Educational programming has become a huge industry from Baby Einstein videos aimed at the pre-crawling set to Teletubbies, Barney, and dozens of other programs aimed at preschool and toddler age children. All of this media aimed at the diaper set is directly opposite of what the American Academy of Pediatrics (APA) has suggested is appropriate for young children.

In fact, the APA has suggested that children under age 2 watch no television at all. This is pretty strong language coming from a medical association known for their mainstream tendencies. Studies show that 61 percent of babies age 6 months to 23 months watch television-typically 2hours a day! How is this affecting young children?

When babies are exposed to television they experience sensory overload. The constantly changing pictures and sounds are hard for a baby to integrate. Instead of learning from the television, they become overwhelmed, overstimulated and less active. Babies who are in the same room with a television spend less time engaging in the focused play that helps them to integrate what they see, hear and feel.

Babies who are constantly overstimulated with television and electronic toys are also less likely to learn how to cope with and solve the little everyday problems that are a part of life.

Does TV really help kids learn? Studies show children can learn from television if what they are seeing is exactly what they experience in the real world. Even if they are able to see objects and experiences they are familiar with, it takes many more repetitions for a baby to learn from TV. When an adult is playing with a baby they can tune in to what the baby is seeing and how they react. This allows the adult to fine-tune the lesson, making it easier for baby to understand. Linguistics experts tell us that parents all over the world use similar styles and speech patterns in teaching children language. These instinctive language patterns are vital in helping a baby to learn language. Television simply can not duplicate the interaction.

While it is a very rare Western household these days that does not contain an active television, turning off the TV can be the best thing you do for your baby. No, you can not entertain your baby every moment and I think it is unlikely that letting baby watch a video while you shower will ruin them. However, letting your baby explore their own world prepares them better for the future than letting them live in Elmo's World.

For more information about media influences on babies and toddlers, I recommend reading "Buy Buy Baby" by Susan Gregory Thomas.

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