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iQuestions Faculty, Ted Baehr 
 
 
Question: 
 
When should a parent step in and make a kid quit their viewing and 
listening habits "cold turkey"? 
 
Answer: 
 
Should children take time off away from the media so that they can 
collect their thoughts? Yes.  
 
We know from many of the studies on Attention Deficit Disorder that 
children can become so immersed in the media that it replicates the 
symptoms of Attention Deficit Disorder.  
 
A couple of years ago there was a Japanese cartoon that was causing 
children to go into spasms. Now, those are the worse case examples.  
 
We know that children need balance in their life. They need time to get 
out, to play, to be away from the movies and entertainment. They 
need time to listen to good music. They need time to amuse 
themselves. But it needs to be limited; they need time to focus on 
their studies. 
 
What you want is a well integrated, well-balanced, what we call a “full-
orbed” life. You want them to be able to consider the mathematical, 
consider the musical, consider their artistic tendencies, to play to use 
all of their senses.  
 
You want your children to develop into complete human beings, and 
not to be skewed in a sense that they’re “damaged,” or what we’d call 
“spoiled.” Because they’ve got one part of their personality that hasn’t 
 
 
been able to develop—one part of their physicality that hasn’t been 
able to develop—you need to have time away from the media to 
appreciate it.  
 
I get a lot of children who say, “I went to camp for the summer,” or “I 
went overseas and I didn’t watch anything. When I came back I was 
shocked about what I’m watching.”  
 
That’s one great way to get your children to start evaluating what 
they’ve become desensitized to, by saying: “Take some time off, then 
go back and look at it. You’ll be amazed that you’re seeing things that 
you never saw before. You’re getting a new insight.” 
 
You can’t do that when you’re continually immersed in the fishbowl 
and you’re not able to get a sense of perspective.  
Baehr -2- 
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