Sitting down is the new Smoking
We have been hearing this a lot in the last few years. Is it true?
The Heart Foundation has listed a few downsides to sitting…
A 2011 study documented 800,000 people and their sitting habits. They found that people who sit the most (compared to people who sit the least) have a greater risk of disease and death:
- 112% increased risk of diabetes.
- 147% increased risk of cardiovascular events like heart attack and stroke.
- 90% increased risk of death from cardiovascular events.
- 49% increased risk of death from any cause.
THE SCIENCE
They also explain the mechanisms through which sitting increases morbidity (disease) and mortality (deaths).When we spend too much time sitting:
Blood flow slows down. This can allow fatty acids to build up in the blood vessels, leading to heart disease.
Sitting for extended periods of time regularly may lead to insulin resistance which can cause obesity and type 2 diabetes, 2 major risk factors for heart disease.
Blood clots form. A 2018 study found that 82% of people who suffer from blood clots, sat for a significantly greater amount of time than the remaining 18%.
Fat and obesity. Your body’s ability to process fats is slowed when we are inactive. When you sit, your body’s production of lipoprotein lipase (an enzyme essential for breaking down fat) drops by about 90%. When your body cannot break down fat, it is stored instead.
So IS sitting the new smoking?
Well not quite, as smoking has been mostly outlawed, while sitting is on the increase. But they both may lead to similar negative health outcomes – this is their conclusion.Quite a bit of recent research suggests that sitting and not moving around is the worst thing you can do for your health.
What to do then?
1. Take regular breaks. Set a timer and get up every 20-60 minutes and have a stretch, walk to the water fountain or up and down the stairs. I have a watch that beeps if I ever sit down at my computer for one hour (easily down when in the middle of an article or a task). Very useful but a bit annoying if you ever happen to go to the cinema!
2. Exercise regularly. Let’s get off that couch and let’s keep moving! Pilates, tai chi, walking, running, cycling, dancing to your favourite music, play with your kids or grandkids… whatever suits.
3. Work around the house. Gardening, DIY (carefully!), walking the dog, tidying up, vacuum cleaning, it all helps in this sense.
OTHER BENEFITS of EXERCISE
Exercise Helpful for Knee Osteoarthritis
Exercise Good for People Aged 60 or Over
Research, published in the journal JAMA Psychiatry, explores the link between cardiorespiratory fitness and depression, finding that for many who suffer from depression, exercise is the best treatment that keeps both the mind and the body healthy.
They also conclude that “being fit at midlife is associated with a lower risk of later-life depression and subsequent CVD [e.g. cardiovascular – including heart disease] mortality, even in the presence of depression”
Exercise helps prevent disease but also reduces mortality and complications (such as diabetes) in people with chronic conditions.
Low leisure-based sitting time and being physically active were associated with reduced odds of death and diabetes in people with COPD (see references)
REFERENCES