Watching TV Has Painkilling Effect On Children

Children can experience a soothing, painkilling effect by watching TV, say scientists from the University of Siena, Italy. 69 children, aged 7-12 had to give blood samples. They were divided into three groups. One group watched cartoons on TV, another group were distracted by their mothers, while the third group had no distractions at all.

Both the children and their mothers were asked to rate their pain scores.

You can read about this study in Archives of Disease in Childhood.

The researchers found that the children who watched TV while giving a blood sample experienced the least pain, when compared to the two other groups. Those who were offered no distraction at all reported pain scores three times higher than the TV cartoon group.

The researchers were surprised that TV had a much greater effect on a child's perception of pain than their mothers' attempts to distract them, as was the case in the second group.

The researchers believe that watching TV had two benefits. 1. It reduced the level of pain for the child. 2. It improved the child's tolerance of the pain he did feel.

The scientists wrote "The higher pain level reported by children during mothers' efforts at distraction shows the difficulty mothers have in interacting positively at a difficult moment in their children's life. This does not mean that the mothers' presence is negative: although it does not reduce pain, the children will recall that they were not left alone on a stressful occasion. Children who are experiencing pain in health care settings of course need the supportive presence of a parent to help them cope effectively. Indeed, children state that having their parent present provides the most comfort when in pain."

We do not know whether or not watching TV helped by distracting the child or actually stimulated the production of endorphins - natural painkilling hormones.

Dr Carlo Bellieni, team leader, said health care professionals should consider using TV to lower a child's perception of pain when undergoing a minor procedure.

Previous research with adults has shown that listening to music can help some people tolerate pain better.

Analgesic Effect of Watching TV During Venipuncture
Bellieni CV, et al
Archives of Disease in Childhood

Written by: Christian Nordqvist
Editor: Medical News Today
(责任编辑：泉水)

搜索

热门标签:

Watching TV Has Painkilling Effect On Children