Kids watching TV for more than 2 hours at greater risk of blood pressure

Washington: A new study has demonstrated that children are likelier to have a higher risk of high blood pressure if they watch more than 2 hours of TV a day.

The study conducted by Spanish Foundation for Science And Technology showed that spending more than two hours a day in front of a screen increases the probability of high blood pressure by 30 percent.

Augusto Cesar F. de Moraes, a Brazilian researcher, said that the study shows the number of new high blood pressure cases and the connection between physical activity and different sedentary behaviors with the risk of high blood pressure in European children.

The scientists gathered data from over two years in 5,221 children from eight European countries (Spain, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Cyprus, Estonia, Sweden and Belgium), who were between 2 and 10 years old at the beginning of the study.

The research showed that the cumulative incidence of high blood pressure in this population during the two years analysed is high: 110 in 1,000.

Experts have recommend that young people carry out physical activity for more than 60 minutes a day, and advise that sedentary activities last no longer than two hours a day.

The study is published in the International Journal of Cardiology.