Overweight and television watching

Recent work by several United States researchers has provided evidence of a direct correlation between obesity and hours of television viewing per day. This paper considers the association between obesity and hours of television viewing as well as the effect of various confounders on this association with an Australian population. A statistically significant association between amount of television viewing and overweight was found. However, the relatively small sample size and the subsequently wide confidence intervals preclude any firm conclusions. Health promotion efforts to encourage physical activity and to promote the prevention of ill health should be made in routine television programming.