Am I a chav parent for putting my 14 week old DS in front of the TV???

[naturopath]

DS currently in front of the TV watching CBeebies or CITV.. kicking his legs and yelping and laughing.. am I a terrible parent or is it good for his development? (Before you suggest it, I have just ordered the Baby Einstein DVDs).

I always manage to eradicate the guilt by looking at my sister's two fantastic teenage daughters. They are so intelligent, gifted and talented and very happy. Watched lots of telly when young.

I train teachers and have worked in schools for about 15 years. I dont think that television has made a difference to any child's academic or social ability.

Therefore my little toddler watches his favourite videos sometimes on his own, often with me (we talk) and his language is fantastic.

3 months is a bit young - but a few hours per week would be fine I think!

Like many things in life, I really do think it is a question of balance. If you stick your child in front of the TV for hours on end and use it as a replacement for reading with them, talking, singing, dancing, playing, going out, etc, etc then I am sure it will slow their development and overall is a "bad thing". If you use it for a limited time to help then calm down before bed or to buy you a bit of time in the morning to have a cup of tea and come to after you have had a bad night and they are up at the crack of dawn (for example) then I just can't see how that is going to harm their development.

thanks guys.. as it happens, lots of 1st class degrees in my family.. and some tv as well - so can't have done us that much harm.

Codswallop to all this 'it'll turn him into an obese moron' rubbish.Only if you let him sit infront fo the TV all day everyday and graduate on to computer games when he's 5...

Honestly, TV is NOT the devil its portrayed as if its part of a balanced lifestyle, with lots of physical activtity, fresh air, imaginative play and social interaction. (CBeebies is really rather sweet, too...)