Jo Frost, Britain's best known parenting expert, returns with a brand new series providing mums and dads with the honest, insightful, no-nonsense advice they need. In the first programme, Jo looks into violent computer games and what effect they have on a game player's behaviour. Working with Professor Doug Gentile, who has done extensive research into the effects of violent media on children, Jo splits forty 12-year-old boys into two groups, one playing a football game, and the others playing a violent game, to see what impact the different games have on behaviour. Jo also meets Kiran, a four-year-old girl who has only ever eaten sweets. Wearing the clothes of a one-year-old and falling behind in her development, Kiran's eating habits have even led her parents to attempt force-feeding. Jo also spends time with 11-year-old Bronwyn, a girl who hates her appearance and cries daily about the way she looks, comparing herself to celebrities in magazines.
Jo meets two families at the end of their tether. In Glasgow she visits Madison, a nine-year-old beauty queen who has always been given everything she ever wanted, from hand made dresses to £200 tracksuits. But her family have paid a heavy price for such largesse, both financially and emotionally. In Blackpool, Jo meets Bailey, a ten-year-old-boy who spends up to 80 hours a week playing online computer games, while his Mum struggles to cope with two demanding younger sisters. Also, in this episode's Big Event Jo stages one of the biggest child fitness tests in decades. Working with Leeds Metropolitan University, who recently re-discovered the results of a 1959 test measuring fitness levels of more than 3,000 seven to ten year olds, Jo puts 80 of today's ten year olds through the same tests to see how they compare.
Jo tackles two of today's toughest and most controversial parenting issues, attention-deficit-hyperactivity-disorder and obesity. In Middlesex she meets a family struggling to cope with seven-year-old Regan, who has recently been diagnosed with ADHD. In Manchester she visits Josh, a ten-year-old boy already classed as obese. And in a revealing study, Jo investigates how young girls really feel about their bodies. With the number of children admitted to hospital with eating disorders rising by 80% over the last 10 years, Jo joins forces with Professor Teri Apter of Cambridge University to find out what mums and dads can do to protect their daughters. Groups of girls aged six, nine and twelve, all with healthy body weights, are invited to have their photos taken before the images are digitally altered to show three bodies getting thinner and three getting bigger. Each girl is asked which image they thought was accurate and in contrast, which one they'd most like to look like. The startling results reveal many perceived themselves as being larger than they really are and that many already wanted to be thinner.
Jo takes on the daily battle over food, one of the most common issues faced by mums and dads up and down the country. In Nottingham she meets a family whose seven-year-old son Rio eats almost nothing but bread and butter. As well as impacting on Rio's health and development, it turns every meal time into an emotional struggle. Jo also visits a family in Birmingham whose three-year-old daughter Katie-Ann constantly pulls her hair out, leaving bald patches all over her head. After trying everything they can to get her to stop, Katie-Ann's parents hope a visit from Jo will finally provide a solution. And continuing her investigations into commonly held parenting beliefs, in this week's big event Jo examines the link between sugar and hyperactivity. Working with Dr David Daley, a specialist in hyperactive behaviour, Jo throws a party for 40 six-year-olds to discover whether different diets have any impact on their energy levels.
Jo looks at one of the most stressful parenting issues: getting your children to sleep. In Woolwich, Jo visits six-year-old Paige, who has never slept a full night in her own bed: meaning that her mum hasn't had more than four hours uninterrupted sleep in over six years. Also, with the number of obese six-year-olds doubling over the last ten years, and one third of children being obese by the age of 11, Jo works with Dr Laura McGowan, chartered psychologist and Research Associate at University College London, to discover the impact of calories and portion sizes on children's health. Jo hosts a lunch party for 40 eight-year-olds, with 20 children given a meal providing the right number of calories for their age, and the other table of 20 given double the amount. Will the kids know when to stop or will they consume more than is healthy just because it's in front of them?
Jo focuses on a serious but hidden threat to the health of the UK's children: sleep deprivation. In many homes up and down the UK the same battle takes place every night - parents trying to get the kids to go to bed, and children trying to persuade their parents to let them stay up later. But how many parents actually know the number of hours sleep their kids really need? Jo wants to find out what effect having less sleep has on children. Working with the UK's leading expert in child sleep issues, Dr Cathy Hill, Jo monitors the sleep habits of a group of 10-year-olds to find out exactly what impact insufficient sleep has on their behaviour at school and at home. Jo also meets four year old Michael who rules the family roost. He has learnt to play his parents against each other and scream until he gets whatever he wants - but as he prepares to start school is it too late to instil discipline? Jo doesn't think so.
Six-year-old Jack has his mum bruised, battered and defeated by the battle he wages each bedtime, and he's not afraid to take a swing at Jo. Can she persuade mum Nikkie to march into the fray and take on her violent son? For superhero fan George, ten costume changes a day is a way of life - now he can't concentrate at school and is falling behind. If Jo is to bring this five-year-old back into the real world she needs to unlock the root of his obsession. The Roadshow deals with sore losers, fears and phobias, and how to handle attention-seeking behaviour. And Jo takes a look at what she believes the single most important cause of parenting problems - families not spending enough time together. The average child spends just 49 minutes a day doing things with their parents. Jo wants to show families how to spend more time together.
Nine-year-old Max hasn't eaten a hot meal in his life. Existing on a diet of custard creams, he has no energy and is unable to concentrate at school. Trenyce is bullied at school. Sad, angry and unable to ask for help, she makes her family pay for it at home. Jo has to teach this seven-year-old how to talk to her mum, and gives both of them the techniques to manage Trenyce's fury. The roadshow deals with sleep problems, imaginary friends and a young wannabe glamour model looking for surgery. And Jo continues her campaign for families to spend more time together, showing how just ten minutes can make a huge difference.
Jo meets six-year-old Madison, who suffers from furious tantrums, and five-year-old Layla, who has never slept a night in her own bed. Madison's mum and dad have sought advice from just about everyone to help cope with their daughter's tantrums, and see Jo as their last resort. The couple are separated, but live just a few houses apart, so Madison ends up screaming two houses down instead of just the one. Is such close proximity something of a mixed blessing? Bedtime is scary for Layla - so scary that in all of her five years she's never slept a night in her own bed. She creates such a disturbance that she gets into mum and dad's bed. With her baby brother already there, and her younger sister following her, no one gets any sleep... not with five in a bed. And this time the roadshow looks at the parenting generation gap, with a dad aged 64 and a 26-year-old mum who can't agree on how to parent their children.
Young brothers Tashan and Diaan are so unruly their mum thinks boarding school in India may be the only answer. Can Jo help rebuild a family and keep the brothers under the family roof? Three-year-old Grace picks holes in her face while she sucks her thumb and her parents have tried everything to address the problem. Jo thinks the solution lies not with Grace herself but her older sister Ella. Also Jo continues with her first ever roadshow, offering her unique brand of no-nonsense advice. Jo advises parents and kids on how to get more active, inspired by the fact that one in three children spends less time outdoors than most prisoners.
Around a million children are being raised in step-families and it's not always plain sailing. Jack, Chloe and Demi have big problems with their stepdad, and the feeling is mutual, with mum Maria stuck in the middle. With the relationship at stake, Jo's got to produce results fast if these children aren't to lose another father figure. Five-year-old Corey has elevated temper tantrums to an Olympic standard and the decibel levels are wearing down everyone at home. But is Corey the worst offender? Also, Jo's back on the road giving parents straight-talking advice on everything from fussy eating to potty training, new baby jealousy to bullying. Family quality time is the key to tackling the big parenting problems and the fact that children get just 49 minutes a day doing things with their mums and dads is a call to action for Jo. This week she's got an after-work strategy to help parents give their children what they need.
Jo Frost runs into major tantrums in this show when she meets 11-year-old Josh, who has a furious temper that's turning home life into a battlefield. Josh's relationship with his dad is proving hard for both of them, and something has to change. Jo gets to the bottom of the problem and has to persuade both sides to build again from the ground up. Oliver is a dawn-raiding biscuit bandit whose early morning missions disrupt the whole house. Not only are mum and dad exhausted, but when Jo examines the dangerous lengths this five year old will go to for treats - it becomes obvious that it's time for action. This time Jo's roadshow deals with the three year old who won't give up breast-feeding, the trials of sibling rivalry, and a fussy eater who'd rather starve for six days than give in to a healthier diet.
Jo catches up with families to see how they've coped since she first answered their pleas for help. Six-year-old Paige had never slept a full night in her own bed, leaving her mum exhausted. Bedtime was a battle that took hours each night and when Jo installed a new bedtime regime, Paige struggled. A year on, Jo learns whether mum has been strong willed enough with Paige to reclaim her evenings. Ten-year-old Bailey spent up to 80 hours a week fixated on fantasy computer games. With his obsession affecting his schoolwork, Jo is keen to find out if Bailey has kicked his unhealthy habit for good. Madison was a pageant princess on stage and a mini diva at home. Mum found her excessive designer lifestyle draining - both emotionally and financially. If she didn't get her daughter's expenses in check she feared losing the house. A year on, has mum managed to curb the out-of-control spending and keep their home?
Emma and Adrian have a 14-year-old girl called Bronwyn and a 3-year-old girl called Elois. Amanda and Roger have an 11-year-old girl Saffron, an 8-year-old boy called Rio and a 6-year-old girl called Sienna. Babar and Cliff have an 11-year-old boy called Jordon and a 9-year-old boy called Regan, who was born with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder.