According to Nielsen Media Research, Inc., the average American watches TV for 4 hours 32 minutes every day. The time people are spending in front of the TV, in spite of the warnings about obesity and other negative effects, strongly suggests that America has a serious TV addiction problem. In fact, a Scientific American study found that TV acts like an addictive drug.

This quiz is a fun assessment of TV's influence in your life. Does it occupy an inordinate amount of your time, attention, and living space? Does it get in the way of other activities? In short, does your TV control you or do you control your TV?

Are you addicted to TV? Find out now:

1. Do you have more than one TV set? Yes [] No []

2. Do you watch more than 2 hrs of TV per day? Yes [] No []

3. Is your family TV on for over 4 hours per day? Yes [] No []

4. Is the focal point of your Family Room a TV set? Yes [] No []

5. Do you have a TV in your bedroom? Yes [] No []

6. Can you turn off the TV in the middle of your favorite show? Yes [] No []

7. Do you ever rush home, speeding or driving recklessly, to catch your favorite TV show? Yes [] No []

8. Do you eat dinner while watching TV? Yes [] No []

9. Do you schedule your life around your favorite TV shows? Yes [] No []

10. Can you tell what time it is by which TV show is on? Yes [] No []

11. Can you turn off the TV now and leave it off for three days? Yes [] No []

12. Do you ever mindlessly surf through channels? Yes [] No []

13. Do you need TV to unwind or fall asleep after a hard day? Yes [] No []

14. Do you need TV to help wake you up in the morning? Yes [] No []

15. Do you watch TV more than you talk to your family? Yes [] No []

16. Do you ever leave the TV on longer than you intend to? Yes [] No []

17. Do you feel you watch too much TV? Yes [] No []

18. Have you ever missed an important event, because you were watching TV? Yes [] No []

19. Have you ever tried to quit watching TV unsuccessfully? Yes [] No []

20. Do you have difficulty limiting the time you spend on the TV? Yes [] No []

To calculate your score:

For all questions, except for #6 and #11, give yourself 1 point for every "Yes" answer and 0 points for every "No." For questions #6 and #11 give yourself 0 points for every "Yes" answer and 1 point for every "No." Add your total.

Your total: ____________

If your total is 6 or under, you are more in control of your TV than your TV is in control of you. Still, keep an eye on how much you watch to make sure your TV time isn't displacing your other important activities. A TV addiction can sneak up on you.

If your total is between 7 and 14, you are probably somewhat addicted to your TV and will have to work to control it. Try making a schedule and planning lots of other fun, healthy activities to keep your mind off the TV.

If your total is 15 or over, you may have a serious addiction problem. You may need to take extreme steps, including getting rid of your TV, to get in control of the time you spend watching TV. It will be worth the effort, however.

Life is too short to waste it in front of the TV.