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Noted pediatrician and Chief of the Division of Adolescent Medicine at the University of New Mexico School of Medicine Dr. Victor Strasburger has authored a new study on the effects of media on children's health. He found that easy access to a wide variety of media can increase a youth's risk for health issues such as obesity, drug use, and early sexual activity. HealthDay reports on this study, and quotes Dr. Strasburger on this issue:

"The media are not the leading cause of any pediatric health problem in the United States, but they do make a substantial contribution to many health problems," Strasburger said. "Parents have to change the way their children access the media -- not permitting TV sets or Internet connections in the child's bedroom, limiting entertainment screen time to less than two hours per day, and co-viewing with their children and adolescents."

The article, "Media and Children: What Needs to Happen Now?",  appears in the June 3 issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association, which is devoted exclusively to children's health.