Reseachers Link TV and Diabetes

With school out for summer, many give in to the temptation to catch up with "Jerry Springer" and "Friends." But a recently released study from Harvard researchers said too much television can be hazardous to your health.

The data, which shows a conclusive link between television watching and risk for adult diabetes, was presented last weekend during the American Diabetes Association's annual conference.

Researchers found that men who spent 40 hours a week in front of the blue glow were more than twice as likely to to get diabetes than those who watched for less than two hours a week.

"The reason we looked at TV watching and diabetes is because previous studies have found that TV watching is related to weight gain and obesity," said Dr. Frank B. Hu from the School of Public Health, the lead researcher of the study.

Research spanned eight years and followed the exercise and television watching patterns of more than 40,000 men.

"Every two years we sent out a questionnaire to the participants and asked how many hours per week they spent watching television," Hu said.

Hu empasized that the link between television and the disease is likely an indirect one, influenced by other health factors tied to frequent TV viewing.

"We're not implying that TV per se causes diabetes," Hu said. "We believe that the relationship is probably due to weight gain, obesity and sedentary behavior."

Hu said he and the other authors hope to publish the study in the coming months.

"It's an unpredictable process, publication," Hu said. "But it was well received [at the conference] so we hope it will be published."