I’m honored to be included here Kate, thank you ever so much. If you need anything, like say me tattooing your name on my butt, just let me know. I also make a pretty good hummus.

Though I’m not sure I think France should have the ability to ban TV programs for children under age 3 (because with that, everybody should be allowed to make their own decisions whether or not to let their under 3-year-old child to watch it), I absolutely commend them for drawing attention to the negative impacts TV can have on a developing child.

I read on one site the writer lamenting this decision by France, stating that her child had been watching TV since he was 8 months old and had learned to talk better by watching it, as well as sing and dance. Study after study have shown that a TV show, even something as praised as Baby Einstein, does NOT help your child learn to talk! Instead, it hinders their speech development and brain growth in so many other ways.

I completely understand that it’s necessary sometimes to let a small child watch a video or short TV show just for parental (or nanny) sanity but I do NOT let my kids watch TV for extended periods of time. Even though it’s more work on my part, I much prefer to interact with them myself, rather than plunking them down in front of an ‘electronic babysitter.’ Especially for children under 18 months old–this is a crucial time in a child’s development. Why let a TV teach (or even supplement teaching) your child?

I hope I didn’t offend anyone–but this is something I believe strongly about! I’d be happy to talk with anybody about it.