Television and Electronic Device Use and Overweight/Obesity Status: Children and Adolescents with and without Autism Spectrum Disorders

Abstract

Because of its association with obesity, excessive "screen time" is a concern. Children and adolescents with autism spectrum disorders (ASD's) have been found to spend much of their free time watching television more than children and adolescents without ASD's. Thus, the purpose of the current study was to determine if the time spent watching television, videos, playing video games and using other electronic devices contributed to overweight and obesity status among children and adolescents with ASD's compared to children and adolescents without ASD's. The current study analyzed data (n = 95,677) that had been previously collected through the 2011/2012 National Survey of Children's Health (NSCH). Children and adolescents with an ASD had significantly higher odds of being overweight or obese than children and adolescents without an ASD. Time watching television was a predictor of overweight/obesity status for children and adolescents both with ASD's and without ASD's. However, only children and adolescents with ASD's who used electronic devices four or more hours per day were significantly more likely to be overweight/obese than those who did not use electronic devices. A discussion of the results and limitations of the study are also provided.