epidemic

I love science. It allows you to say commonsensical things, but with proof. The latest non-revelation to be offered by researchers is that switching off the television does not guarantee that children will exercise. A four-year study of more than 10,000 American children ages 10 to 15 found no correlation between the amount of time spent watching television and the amount of time spent engaged in vigorous activity.

According to the study, long hours spent watching television has contributed to the obesity epidemic among children, but killing your television won't reverse the trend. Watching TV and physical exercise are not "functional opposites." If they were, everyone would be on a "no television" diet.

In April, TLC will air a new reality show based on a BBC special called Honey, We're Killing the Kids!

The show will focus on the obesity epidemic as Dr. Lisa Hark, a nutrition expert, takes over an overweight and unhealthy family and tries to get them to change their eating habits and lifestyles. It seems like just the right show for TLC, but right now I think I'm more entertained by the ads for the show than the idea of the show itself. Firsts of all, the show's title is possibly the most morbid I've ever heard, but in the ads it takes on a whole new kind of weirdness when the voiceover starts talking about the show like it's some kind of wacky carnival attraction. I don't think I've ever seen the fear of a child's untimely death portrayed in such an upbeat manner. Maybe they should hire this voiceover guy to comfort people at funerals, since he seems rather amused by the thought of things not living anymore.