Prolonged sitting has a negative effect on health/wayhomestudio
Technological progress in recent decades has deprived people of the need and desire to move. Many people in the world sit for long periods of time throughout the day, whether it's in front of a computer at work or in front of the TV at home.
Given that the human body is designed to move, all that sitting is definitely harmful our health. A new study from the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) confirmed this – and even more, writes Science Alert.
At the beginning of the study, 5,856 participants aged 63 to 99 were asked to wear an activity monitor
strong>on the thigh for seven days at the beginning of the study. The researchers then followed them for ten years, during which time 1,733 of the participants died.
The risk of death increases
The researchers used artificial intelligence to use an activity monitor to find out how long the participants sat, and then associated it with the risk of death. The data showed that participants who sat for more than 11 hours a day had a 57 percent higher risk of death during the study period than those who sat for less than nine and a half hours a day. p>
But does regular exercise negate the health risks associated with excessive sitting? According to a UCSD study, no. The risk of premature death remained even with more moderate and intense physical activity. A 2019 study also found that more exercise does not reduce the risk of diseases such as type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and stroke that are caused by sitting too much.
However, a study in Australia found that walking between 9,000 and 10,500 steps a day reduced the risk of premature death even in sedentary people.
Contradictory results may be explained by , that activity monitors were worn on the hip in the UCSD study and on the wrist in the Australian study, which may have led to different estimates of time spent sitting.
The Australian study also did not use special software to determine when participants were sitting and when they were standing, meaning standing could have been mistaken for sitting. For example, if a participant stood still for half an hour, this would be counted as half an hour of sitting. This may mean that the Australian study underestimated the amount of time participants spent sitting.
Evidence from the UCSD study underlines the need to sit less. Current recommendations from the World Health Organization confirm this, recommending that adults limit sitting time and break up long periods of sitting into breaks.
Scientists advise not to sit still for too long/Photo by Arthur Hidden
How much sitting is too much?
So how much sitting is too much? The UCSD study claims 11 hours a day. Other studies suggest that even seven hours a day may be too much. There's also plenty of research showing that you shouldn't sit for more than 30 minutes at a time, because it can raise your blood sugar and blood pressure.
So what? can you do to avoid sitting for long periods of time?
If you are an office worker, a sit-stand desk can help you. Or you can get up and move between work tasks or while talking on the phone. At home, you can get up during a TV commercial break or while the kettle is boiling. Some smart devices and devices also buzz if you sit for too long.
But what if you can't stand or walk? A 2020 study found that small arm exercises (such as two minutes every 20 minutes) lowered blood sugar levels in people in wheelchairs. If you're doing something that means you're not sitting still, you're reaping the health benefits.