Are You Addicted To Watching Television?

According to various estimates, Americans watch anywhere from three to six hours of television – every single day!

These numbers vary based on certain factors (e.g. age, ethnicity, season), but regardless, they are shocking – given the numbers just mentioned, that equates to anywhere from 45 to 90 days per year of watching TV. Yes, that’s over a month to around three months (or one quarter of a year)!

This article looks at:

• the downsides to watching too much television
• other signs you may be addicted to your TV
• the benefits of watching less (or even no) television
• some tips and strategies on how to cut down your TV watching

And it’s worth pointing out that, these days, the word “television” as used here also applies to streaming services (e.g. Hulu, Netflix), and not only what is broadcast using traditional methods.

Why You Should Watch Less Television

There are several health issues (both physical and mental) that can arise from being addicted to the television, including:

1. Behaviour. There have been several studies that show children who watch too much television (three hours or more per day) are more likely to develop bad and antisocial behaviours. It’s worth noting that they also considered the possibility that children with behavioural issues simply watched more television, but they found no evidence of that.
2. Cardiovascular Disease. Research has found that for each additional two hours of television you watch per day, your risk of heart disease increases by around 15%.
3. Lower Sperm Counts. One smallish study found that watching at least 20 hours of TV per week led to lower sperm counts than those who watched less – and especially those who did some exercise.
4. Premature Death. No doubt in part because of the risk of heart disease, other studies have shown a correlation between television watching (for more than three hours per day) and premature death.
5. Weight Gain And Obesity. Various studies have shown that watching TV leads to gaining weight and even becoming obese – and this applies both to children and adults. This may in part be caused by the combination of watching TV and snacking, often on unhealthy foods.

Other Signs You May Be Watching Too Much Television

Apart from exceeding the average amount of TV time mentioned in the introduction, here are a few other signs you may be addicted to your television:

1. Bedtime. If you go to bed later than you’d like (or know you should) because you absolutely have to see your show.
2. Cancelling Plans. If you cancel other plans (e.g. to out for dinner or a show or meet up with friends) because you don’t want to miss a show.
3. Habit. If the first thing you do when you enter a room with a TV in it is turn it on (e.g. when you get up in the morning, when you return home from work or the shops or a night out).
4. No Other Interests. If you do not engage in any activities or hobbies other than watching TV.
5. Obsession. If you cannot think about anything else until the next episode is available in a show you’re following.
6. Passive Therapy. If you’re using your television as a way to avoid dealing with problems in your life, because it’s easier (albeit less helpful).

Benefits Of Watching Less Television

Apart from reducing or even removing health risks listed above, there are other reasons why it’s good for you to watch less television, including:

1. Time. This is perhaps the most obvious benefit, but look back at the number of days you might be spending watching television and then consider what else you could be using some or all of that time for. Some people even report that it feels as though they have more than 24 hours in a day after giving up their TV watching habit.
2. Energy. Although this may sound counterintuitive, watching television does drain you of energy. It’s not that the act of watching consumes much energy – it’s more like your body forgets how to use energy, in the same way that muscles you don’t use often enough atrophy.
3. Productivity. In the past, I have been guilty of trying to work on my computer while watching TV, something I no longer do, and I can confirm that you cannot do both effectively. Either my work suffered – it took longer or was of lower quality – or I didn’t pay attention to what I had on the television, or, more likely, a bit of both. (Remember that many people like to think they can multitask, but studies show that we are generally not as good at it as we think, and that it actually lowers productivity.) This also applies to household chores too – you can actually get quite a bit done during the time it would take to watch just one show.
4. Better Entertainment. Once you stop watching TV, you might discover that there are far better forms of entertainment available to you. Examples include attending live events (e.g. music recitals, museums, poetry readings, theatre, live bands, or even karaoke if that’s your thing).
5. Sleep. There are numerous studies that show looking at any type of screen (e.g. television, as well as computers and smartphones) too close to bedtime can disrupt your sleep. By not watching TV, or, at least, not within several hours of going to bed, you are likely to have a better night’s sleep and wake up feeling refreshed and, maybe, earlier, which gives you more time to get more stuff done.
6. Less Stress. Following on from the previous point, more sleep will equate to less anxiety and stress, but it’s also worth bearing in mind that watching television, especially the news (because it’s often bad and negative and depressing, which is why I stopped watching it decades ago), has been shown to increase stress levels.
7. Alertness. Most of the time, television watching is a relatively passive activity that does not require you to use your brain that much. Once you stop watching TV and doing other things, that will typically require a higher level of brain activity (e.g. reading, talking), you may well find you feel sharper mentally.
8. Appreciation. Television dulls your senses, partly with the saturation of special effects, but once you move away from the screen and spend more time elsewhere (e.g. outside), you’ll begin to notice, appreciate, and be grateful for the beauty that is all around us.
9. Self-Esteem. When you watch a lot of TV, you can end up comparing yourself and your life, consciously or subconsciously, to the stars and celebrities that you see on the screen. Without those comparisons to make, you will start to feel better about yourself.
10. Open-Mindedness. You need to realize that a handful of organizations – probably half a dozen or fewer these days – control the vast majority of all the media you consume, which means you are rarely seeing both sides of any stories. And this applies to shows too, not only the news – it’s called programming for a reason, and if you look, you’ll find that everyday TV shows have a hidden message and ulterior motive. When you stop watching TV and are no longer exposed to those programs, you’ll begin to be more aware of the differing perspectives and be more open-minded.
11. Creativity. Television, in most cases, is a passive activity, and probably deliberately so – you are seeing (and hearing) what somebody else has determined you should be exposed to, and one of the effects of that is that your imagination and creativity are dulled too. When you replace the TV with other forms of entertainment (e.g. reading), you’ll find your imagination also begins to return.

How To Cut Down On TV Watching

So, if you decide you want to reclaim your health and your time, how can you go about reducing your screen time?

Well, here are a few tips and strategies for you, depending on how strict you wish to be:

1. Monitoring. Perhaps the first step to take is to actually record how many hours per day you spend watching television – and what you watch. Once you’ve done that for a few weeks, you may be surprised or even shocked at how much time you are spending. Knowing how many hours per day or week you watch TV can help you set limits for yourself, and you can more easily evaluate where your time is being used vs. being wasted, because not all television is a waste. For example, you could easily argue that a science or history or nature documentary, or a quiz show, is educational and not a waste at all – but do you really need to watch a rerun of a decades-old sitcom that you’ve already seen three times before?
2. Cold Turkey. As with any addiction (e.g. drugs, alcohol), giving up the source of your addiction all at once is a method that can work for some people. If you choose to try this approach, it’s suggested that you need to go at least 30 days without watching any TV at all. After those 30 days, you are still free to decide whether you want to continue watching some or no TV – the cold turkey period is only to help you try to break your addiction.
3. Reduce Gradually. You don’t have to give it all up at once – you can aim to reduce the number of hours gradually, such as one less hour per day for the first week, and then two hours the next, and so on, or whatever schedule works best for you.
4. Use A Timer. Another option is to set a timer, and when it goes off, you stop watching – or, at least, make a conscious choice to continue. And if your television has a built-in timer, where the device shuts down after the time is reached, so much the better.
5. Find Alternative Entertainment. There are so many other ways to entertain yourself once you stop to think about it. Some mean you still get to stay at home (e.g. playing games, doing puzzles, listening to music or the radio, talking to each other, learning or brushing up on a skill, starting some form of creative activity such as painting) if you’re not keen on going out (or are unable to), while others are activities you typically do elsewhere (e.g. museums, theatres, restaurants, parks, walks / hikes, sport, charity work). You might also choose to socialize more, either by hosting dinner parties or game nights yourself, or by meeting up with friends or family elsewhere. You might also want to check out this article about keeping your brain active, and meditation is another useful way you could spend your time.
6. Define What’s Important To You. As an addition to the previous strategy, once you are confident that you know who you are and what your priorities are (e.g. principles, values), the more easy it will be to find ways to use your time that do not involve the television. (I have an article that might help you do this here.)
7. Record Your Shows. You can choose to record all the shows you want to watch instead of watching them when they are originally broadcast. This means you then need to consciously choose when (or even if) to watch them – i.e. it’s no longer a case of automatically sitting down and switching the TV on – and you can fast-forward through any adverts. Recording the shows will also ease any (self-induced) pressure or anxiety you feel to be in front of the TV at a specified time.
8. Exercise. When you watch TV, you will find you appear to have less energy, which means you probably won’t get the exercise you need – and you’ll feel like you don’t have time anyway. However, if you prioritize exercise over TV watching, you’ll end up with more energy, as well as all of the other health benefits of exercising, and you won’t be spending as much time in front of the TV.
9. Avoid Discussions. A common water cooler topic is whatever TV shows were on the previous night, so you should try to avoid these because they may only serve to encourage you to watch those shows again. In a similar vein, avoid (or unfollow) social media accounts devoted to TV shows.
10. Unsubscribe. If you’re really serious about this, then you can cancel your subscriptions to services such as Hulu and Netflix, then you’re not tempted to channel surf (something I’ve never done anyway).
11. Get Rid Of Your Television. This is perhaps the ultimate step – remove the device entirely from your home. I’m not sure I’d ever want to go that far, because you never know what documentaries might be of interest.

Conclusion

As the saying goes, nobody lies on their deathbed and wishes they’d watched more television. In fact, one of the most common regrets people do hear from those who are dying is that they wish they’d done more with their lives – and watching less TV is certain one easy way to do more things that truly matter to you.

And giving up TV doesn’t have to be an all-or-nothing job – even if you watch one less hour per day, that’s an entire 60 minutes you could be doing something more worthwhile while potentially improving your health, and that still adds up to the equivalent of 15 days over the course of a year.

Personally, as I mentioned above, I watch less than I used to, and that is largely the result of my being a widower now.

My wife used her computer far less than I did, mainly because she suffered from chronic and frequently severe arthritis, which meant she had to limit her computer time – and when she wasn’t working, she would put the TV on.

Since I was working in the same room, I didn’t get a lot of choice in the matter, but as I said above, it slowed down my work and I often found I had lost the plot in terms of the shows that were on anyway. And even if I wasn’t consciously watching, television is incredibly intrusive and difficult to ignore.

These days, I tend to have music playing when I’m working (often instrumental music because it’s less distracting to me), with periods of total silence (dogs permitting), only watching TV at meal times, and, many afternoons, a movie while I relax.

I can’t put a number to it, but I know I’m watching far less than I used to, and I’m also more engaged in what I watch because I’m not trying to multitask.

Some of the time I used to spend watching television I now use to do things around the house, which gets me moving more and is a better use of my time.

And I have started reading again, something I missed for years because there never seemed to be the time, but now I set aside time most days to read for an hour or so – which is good because usually, reading a book (fiction or non-fiction) gets the brain working more than TV does, and I get to learn new things too.

So my recommendation would be to try it – cut back (or cut out) your television watching and see how your life changes. And if it doesn’t work out for you, what have you really lost?

Lastly, since turning on the television has become a habit for many people, something they automatically do when they get home from work, for example, then you may be interested in my Brain Training For Success course, which talks about eliminating bad habits and replacing them with better habits, in Modules 3 and 4.

Additional Resources

These are suggestions for those who wish to delve deeper into any of the above:

1. Atomic Habits