Very recently, a study has found that too much time spent watching TV as well as not having enough physical activity during younger years will lead to a brain's weak cognitive functions later in life.
The study, which is published in JAMA Psychiatry, involved assessing television viewing habits and the physical activities of 3,247 adults aged 18 to 30. Data was gathered with the use of a questionnaire given to participants during repeated visits over 25 years.
Television viewing habits were checked every five years. Physical activity, or exercise, was assessed every two to five years. A “high television viewing” habit was defined as watching TV for three hours or more daily, for two-thirds of the visits. Exercise, on the other hand, was measured through time and intensity.
After the 25-year period when the participants were in their 40s to 50s, cognitive functions were evaluated using three tests focused on either mental and physical quickness, focus and memory.
The researchers found that those who had high television viewing habits were more likely to do poorly on the cognitive focus and speed tests, while those who had very little physical exercise also tended to perform poorly on another test. Moreover, those who had both high viewing habits and little physical activity even had it worse.
"Then people who had both low physical activity and high TV had even worse performance. It was an even bigger effect," Dr. Kristine Yaffe, a psychiatrist at UCSF and senior author on the study, told NPR.
The researchers noted that the study has some limitations, which include not having to look at what the participants were watching on TV.
"Is it because by watching a lot of TV, you're not challenging your brain?" said Yaffe.
According to a press release, this study is one of the few studies which have attempted to scrutinize the relationship between physical activity during early adulthood and brain function later in life. Given that recent technology promotes more screentime and sedentary lifestyles, a growing health concern would be that of future generations.
“This is one of the first studies to demonstrate that these risk behaviors may be critical targets for prevention of cognitive aging even before middle age,” wrote the researchers.
According to Get.com, watching TV is today's most common pastime that people have, even ousting social media and playing video games. Nowadays, with 54 percent of Americans spending more leisure time transforming into a potato couch and not exercising, the study's findings might very well explain that future generations need to get off that couch.
