You should not watch TV for more than 2 hours a day – it harms your health

If adults spend no more than two hours watching TV every day, they can minimize the risk for health related to television.

A new study by the University of Glasgow examined data from the British Biobank and found that most of the health risks associated with too much time spent in watching TV can be reduced if people limit their viewing time to two hours a day or less.

Researchers found that the lowest overall health risks, including cancer and cardiovascular disease, were associated with watching TV for two hours or less per day. Further analysis showed that 6% of all deaths and 8% of cardiovascular deaths were attributable to television time. They also showed that potentially, if all participants had limited their TV viewing to two hours a day, 5.62% of all deaths and 7.97% of deaths from cardiovascular disease could have been prevented or delayed.

Dr Hamish Foster, from the University of Glasgow's Institute of Health and Wellbeing, who led the study, said:
“This study adds more weight to the evidence that too much time spent watching TV can be harmful to health. Our research suggests the need to limit television time. It can delay or prevent many adverse health effects. There is still a lot of work to be done before we can make firm recommendations about TV viewing time.”