Teens spending 30, 40, even 50 each week in front of screens

No surprise: Teens are spending an increasing amount of time in front of computer and television screens, sometimes a surprising and excessive amount, according to a new study from Sainte-Justine Children's Hospital Research Center and the University of Montreal. But exactly how much? A lot. 60 percent of teens spend 20 hours before PCs and TVs, while about 33 percent spend 40 hours and 7 percent spend a full 50 hours before monitors of some sort. That's getting up there.

In an analysis of seventh graders living in Montreal, the AHA found that kids with "lower educational attainment" were the most likely to tally up the highest weekly times in front of TVs and PCs. A high amount of TV time is also correlated with an increased risk of obesity, a key factor in heart disease and one which researchers commonly say gets started in childhood or adolescence.

Students in the study filled out 20 questionnaires over a period of five years; the research found that the screen-time pattern was largely consistent throughout high school and didn't change much over the five-year span. Among teens, TV was still more popular than computers: 85 percent of adolescents reported that they spent less than 10 hours a week on a computer, leaving television the preferred way for kids to veg out.

Takeaways? Per the linked piece: Said one of the study's co-authors, "Researchers need to explore why adolescents' (notably girls') levels of television viewing through high school are higher if they live in neighborhoods that are socio-economically disadvantaged. In the meantime, we should make sure that teens living in these neighborhoods have access to safe and appealing active alternatives to sitting in front of screens."

Ya hear that kids? Get outside or you'll end up like one of us.

LINK: Many teens spend 30 hours a week on 'screen time' during high school