Feeling guilty about DD watching TV

[Jessicatmagnificat]

DD is 11mo. She watches about 15 mins of TV - CBeebies only - 3 times a day to allow me to get some housework done and eat my meals in peace. We do not have the TV on for the rest of the day. But I still feel guilty and worried that this might slow down her speech development and lead to impaired concentration when she is older. She is my PFB and I don't want to do anything wrong! But, how on earth would I get things done without TV? (Have tried involving her in my housework activities, providing treasure baskets etc, but none of these work as well as TV for buying me some time).

Alternately, have any parents allowed their DC to watch TV and not had any of these problems? I know the general guidance states no TV at all until children are 2; this seems strict and maybe a bit unrealistic to me. But I am interested to know what other parents do.

omg, 15 minutes three times a day! She's fine!!!

oh dont worry about 15 mins a day. thats nothing

That is really good to hear! It's just that not allowing your kids to watch TV has become some kind of stick with which you can beat errant mummies like me! You don't hear much from the middle of the road mums, those of us who let our kids watch TV, but limit its use and control what is viewed.

they're not general guidelines, are they? they're the guidelines of a hack scientist with a book out. 15 mins a day is fine. it's practically saintly, imo.

I wouldn't worry - honestly - 15 mins a few times a day - that's nothing!

DS is 2.2, he's always watched cbeebies and has a few dvds too. I've never even given it a second thought, as long as we're reading books, playing games, going out etc too.
He is communicating and speaking really well for his age. and he is fantastic at remembering songs, actions and sign language... most of which he has picked up from the tv and dvds!

Well, it's really about 45 -50 mins a day, but in short intervals. I'm just a bit unnerved by hearing about how watching TV can lead to ADHD. Surely things are not as clear cut as that, and ADHD has a very complex causes?

My 4 month old cranes her neck from where ever I put her to watch TV . I need TV to get me through the monotony of feeding and sleeping sometimes! I can only hope she grows up enjoying will and grace and friends rather than cebeebies!

I have yet to find out if this has any adverse affects beyond a predeliction for trashy american comedy and the possible development of an american accent!

We do LOADs of reading, singing, going out etc so hopefully the TV won't invalidate all the time we spend doing these good things.

I am going to resist the temptation to stop googling "babies and TV" and reading the scary results and embrace my inner TV slut for DD (for 45 mins a day anyway!)

Totally agree - don't read any of it!

I'm sure my ds's first word was 'remote'
(Although he genuinelly was obsessed with the tv remote at about 12 months old!!)

You sound like a great mum and dd sounds like she's getting lots of different types of stimulation and attention. That's what counts.

No - don't worry. I am sure my DS has watched far too much TV in his time (and probably still does). I feel even worse because as a HV I should know better

Have to say though that he is a bright and active little boy - no speech problems etc.

Sometimes it's the only way to get anything done.

We have the tv on all day, mostly as background. Dd (2.7) never really paid much attention to until recently but will still has a very short attention span and will watch 10 mins or so before getting bored. She is very intelligent and articulate and, at her 2 year review with the hv, I was told that she was speaking at the level of a 3 yr old. Definitely don't worry about 45 mins a day. I think cos the tv is on all the time in our house it is not viewed as a treat and dd just ignores it most of the time.

We have moved recently and most of the mums that I have met breath a sigh of relief when I mention something on Cbeebies, but instantly say 'of course I only let him/her watch 30 mins a day', and I say, 'oh yes sometimes an hour if we're having a bit of a grizzly day' and then I leave thinking 'I am the world's biggest liar'. The trouble is I love TV, but 'experts' do make you feel like you are giving your kids crack every time they watch Higgledy House.

I don't think tv is as bad as some of the research suggests. A few minutes of Cbeebies here and there is not going to do any harm. I think the problems arise when children are not given any stimulation and are just left to their own devices with the TV as company or are exposed to programmes such as the Jeremy Kyle show or horror films.

i could not survive without cbeebies!

its on in the morning while im racing about getting ready for work, pegging washing out, emptying dishwasher.. i could not manage to get everything done with dd under my feet

then its not on all day until after tea, just in time for night garden.

sometimes i feel bad that u let her watch any tv, and sometimes i think it does her good to have a bit of down time. shes on the go so much that its nice for her to just relax,

I think the key word here is balance and 15 mins a few times a day is absolutely fine IMO (in fact as Aitch said, its pretty saintly). DD is an early riser and I would be lost without cbeebies/peppa pig dvds. Especially with these dark mornings - we can't exactly be out feeding the ducks at 6am like we used to in the summer. They would think we were mad.

Please stop worrying.

My ds watched tv a lot when he was young. exdp left when he was 18 months old, and I wasn't coping well, so for about 18 months the tv was our closest friend.

He also watched it a lot as he was getting older, because as a single mum, I had to get some stuff done!

He is now a very very articulate, bright 14 year old. I think all this stuff about not letting them watch tv is a form of luddism.

Not saying let them watch it all the time...

my dd(4) loves cbeebies and will watch it all day if i let her. trouble is ds(1) will watch it the whole time it's on. this has made me more aware of how much it's on and so i do now limit it to morning until 9am and evening tea until bedtime. night garden has improved going to bed 100%.

I grew up watching shedloads of TV. I LOVED CBBC and children's dramas. I also loved playing wiith my friends, drawing, reading/being read to, dance, music and a whole lot of other things. My point is, I really don't believe TV is the evil it's portrayed as, if it is supervised and approprriate viewing (ie. no adult themed programmes or endless adverts) and as long as it is just one of a varied range of entertainment/hobbies/interests a child has.

I let my little boy (2 and a half) watch CBeebies and kid's DVDs every day, btw, and he is a healthy, happy child with a keen interest in the world around him, great speech/language skills and a terrific imagination.