Television found to be a painkiller for kids
By Darren Murph 
posted August 19th 2006 2:01PM
posted August 19th 2006 2:01PM
If you've spent more than five minutes around a kid, you're probably well aware that ripping him / her from the couch while their favorite cartoon rolls in the background isn't much easier than trying to get any solid deets on Apple's probably (not) impending iPhone (or similarly named product). Researchers in Italy took this seemingly well-known fact and put it to the test by drawing blood via hypodermic needle (rough way to prove a hypothesis, eh?) from a random sample of 72 children, all between the ages of 7-12. Not-so-surprisingly, little ones who were watching television while being stuck reported 50 percent less pain than kids who were being coaxed by dear old mom; the TV-watching subjects also claimed just one third the pain of those poor folks who endured the process while left alone without loving nor entertainment. Carlo Bellieni -- the author of the study, father of three, and neonatologist / pediatrician at the University of Siena in Italy -- claimed that such a powerful distraction was indeed beneficial in keeping the agony level in these type scenarios at a minimum, but was rather alarmed that television was a more potent painkiller than "a mother's touch." While it may be surprising that television won over the distracted hearts of children more effectively than their own mums, Dr. Brenda McClain of Yale University asserts that any type of "passive distraction" (like video games?) is better suited at redirecting thoughts, especially when you consider the sympathy of a parent typically leads a child to believe something awful is about to happen. In all honestly, however, it seems that television has always been an escape route from reality -- and although we're far from being doctors (of medicine), we have reason to assume that if these kids were replaced by grownups, we'd see somewhat similar results. So, any volunteers?
Pfft, ever heard of Mike Teavee?
He turned into a 5" inch tall dwarf.
And it was all TV's fault. :(
im glad to see the word mum not mom for 1ce on the net! lol (should be mam where im from tho :P )
Not all that surprising actually though, my mum sez that when im on my PC she can walk in the room and do something and i usually wont even notice. Still interesting mind.
"1ce"? Does saving one letter really make that muh of a difference?
Also, I had no idea Franklin was broadcast in 16:9.
/sarcasm
Must 'deets' and 'iPhone' be abused so?
""1ce"? Does saving one letter really make that muh of a difference?"
well, it hasnt now as ive got 2 explain to you that it dont even matter because u still no what im on about so why be so pathetic?
Anyway, im not hear to cause arguments, so ill ignore that. What do you mean by "Also, I had no idea Franklin was broadcast in 16:9." (im blond)
He means the TV show in the picture, they're watching it on widescreen.
Oh, and typing like that outside of a real-time environment makes you look like an idiot. :D
I've got an active lifestyle where injuries like painful sprains and so on are very common. Nothing is a better sedative/pain killer than PC gaming, the pain just goes away. This is one of the reasons why I absolutely love what Penny-Arcade is doing with their charities.
@Nathan M.
So true. typing like this "omg ur mom sez u left the lite on!" when you're not in a game or something like that just makes you look dumb.
I'd hate to be in this study, just the mention of hypodermic needles makes me shiver.
ok, fair enough, if you all agree, ill not type like that here anymore :P sorry!
Tv is a great ameriacaan art and is not a painkiller for kids!
makes sense. i used to get allergy shots when i was a kid. being distracted by something meant that i wasn't as tense, waiting for the needle. thus, my muscles were looser, and it hurt less.
anyone who gives shots to kids on a regular basis could have told the researchers the same thing. mom's attempts to distract are pretty easy to see through - results are going to be better when the kid is focused on something that he/she chooses to be interested in.
I believe it. A couple of months ago, my 5 year old was stung in the neck by a wasp. We turned on Cartoon Network and in less than a minute, he stopped crying.
What is really going on here is the power of distraction which can be accomplished by several methods. 10 years ago I presented data on the use of VR headsets showing undersea water scenes to distract women undergoing surgery without general anesthesia. We showed that anxiety was greatly reduced and that pain followed.
what a great post. children do like bright and animated images so it is really possible that watching tv could be a real painkiller. especially if you have a huge led tv, your kid will probably be ignoring you.
what a great post. children do like bright and animated images so it is really possible that watching tv could be a real painkiller. especially if you have a huge led tv, your kid will probably be ignoring you.
http://www.1staudiovisual.co.uk/