The most loyal friend these days is not your family members but the indispensable Television.

We all undoubtedly count for our television sets before we sit on the couch of the living room after a hard day’s work routine. Or tune in to the television before dozing off to sleep to catch up on our favorite soaps. This routine is endless since it becomes a habit for every one. Starting from the smallest member (even a 2 year old) to a 70 year old television is an all time favorite. A baby learns to pick up the remote and swap channels before he starts walking or talking. The interest never varies. They all love watching television more than doing any activity. But do you realize the hazards of watching television very frequently. They are endless. It not only damages your vision but it clogs your mind making your thinking power almost nil. The characters involved in the television captures the attention of the viewer so much that he feels himself to be a part of it. The attention is so gripping that he cannot discriminate himself from the other character. Children are the worst affected. They can avoid anything to just sit mindlessly in front of the television set and forget the world. Childhood obesity is the net result of poor nutrition and inactive lifestyle. They prefer to watch television rather than play with their friends or get fresh air. This is the most common activity in every household. This habit is so harmful that it tends to weaken the digestive organs of the body. It also tends to overeating and dissatisfaction. This is based on the fact that if you are not concentrating on food, you are not mindful of the food and in order to satisfy your appetite tend to gorge on your meals more. By turning off the boob tube you would do a favor on yourself and start savoring your meals. You would also feel content with fewer portions compared to huge ones.

Television takes up the usual interactive time between family members making communication difficult. Children deficit on their homework, mothers are more concerned about lives of character played in soap operas and fathers glue themselves to the idiot box once they are home and forget asking about their family members. The most important factor is we tend to become what we watch. Commercials throwing tempting offers to artificial foods and synthetic foods seem more palatable than their regular full course meals. They lure the viewers by their tempting and attractive packaged medium of display done by even more attractive looking actors. However we must understand that the remote is in our hands. One click and the idiot box are out of our sight. We must inculcate the following rule to build up a healthy and happy life sans television.

• Indulge yourself in the adventure of life by enjoying nature. Step out of your house for activities like swimming, cycling, skating, walking rather than sitting in front of the television.

• Instead of touching the remote pick up a god book and immerse yourself in it.

• Get proper sleep by switching off the television at 10.00. This would make you get more sleep and prepare you for the next day with a big bang.

• Join up a new hobby like painting, music, dancing to put a thrill of adventure in your mundane life.

• Cook up a healthy and scrumptious meal for your family and sit together at dinner while enjoying a healthy conversation.

The list is endless but the fact remains that you need to be determined to take up the action and be happy without any television support. Life without television can bring a lot of happiness to our lives.