Is It Getting Harder To Raise Children?
According to a government estimate, it will cost approximately $222
,360 for middle-income, 2-parent families to raise babies born in 2009. Housing represents 31% of the cost; childcare and education, 17%; and food, 16%. As children get older, the annual cost increases from less than $12,000 for babies to more than $13,000 for teenagers. Where children are raised also affects the cost. Rural areas are the cheapest and the Northeast is the most expensive. However, the cost per child for a 2-child family is 25% less than the cost for a 1-child family if parents "compair".Irregardless of family size, children eat too many sugary snacks. According to a study published in the journal Pediatrics, they're influenced by cartoon characters on the packaging. Of the 40 children ages 4-6, most chose gummy fruit, graham crackers and carrots labeled with cartoon stickers. They also said the snacks with cartoon characters tasted better - except the carrots. Labeling foods with toys, characters and celebrities grew 78% from 2006 to 2008, but only 18% of the foods met children's nutritional standards. Considering about two-thirds of the promotions came from manufacturers who'd pledged to limit marketing to children, using cartoon characters is "funny business".
Children watch too much television. A study of approximately 7,000 families also published in the journal Pediatrics found that 25% of children spend more than 2 hours a day watching television or playing video games, that television time increases with age and that boys watch more television than girls. The recommended television limit for children is less than 2 hours a day and no television for children under 2. However, less than 50% of parents of children 9-15 regularly limited television. In fact, 25% of parents thought the limit was 3 hours or more. Most children would think it was even more than that.
Finally, children play too many video games. Another study published in the journal Pediatrics followed more than 1,300 children in grades 3-5 for over a year. Parents and their children were asked to estimate how many hours the children spent weekly on video games and television. Then the children's attention spans were assessed by their teachers. According to the study, elementary school children who played video games more than 2 hours daily were 67% likelier to have attention problems in school. It seems turning off both television and video games is the way to turn on education.
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