There's bad news for parents who frequently plop their kids in front of the TV to give themselves a break: It might actually end up leaving moms and dads more stressed.

Why? Because the more television that kids watch, the more they're exposed to advertising messages. The more advertising they see, the more likely they are to insist on purchasing items when they go with their parents to the store -- and perhaps make a fuss if told "no." All that, researchers say, may contribute to parents' overall stress levels, well beyond a single shopping trip.

The findings come from a University of Arizona-led study, published in the International Journal of Advertising, that explores the potential effects of children's television watching habits on their parents' stress levels. "The more advertising children see, the more they ask for things and the more conflict is generated," said lead study author Matthew Lapierre, an assistant professor in the UArizona Department of Communication in the College of Social and Behavioral Sciences. "What we haven't looked at before is what the potential effect is on parents. We know kids ask for things, we know it leads to conflict, but we wanted to ask the next question: Could this be contributing to parents' overall stress?" The study suggests that it could. There are a few things parents can do, perhaps the most obvious of which is limiting screen time.

What can we infer from the passage?

A) When watching one television ad, children purchase one thing from it.

B) Children will ask for more things when they watch more ads, which can lead to more conflict.

C) Children's habit of watching TV has a potential impact on parents' stress level.

D) For parents, putting their children in front of the TV tends to make themselves happy.

E) Parents can reduce their stress by limiting their children to watch TV.