Sitting is the New Smoking

There’s a direct relationship between time spent sitting and your risk of early mortality of any cause, researchers in a recent study published by the Annals of Internal Medicine have discovered. Based on a study of nearly 8,000 adults, they found that as your total sitting time increases, so does your risk of an early death. Sitting longer is causing nothing but problems for our health. Who would’ve thought, we are sitting ourselves to death.

Yes, it’s true over the past few years, prolonged sitting has emerged as a new health plague. Sitting is the new smoking, headlines now warn us.

Far too many of us live in a world where we sit on our journey to work, we sit in front of the computer for 8 hours, and we come home and sit on the couch. We’ve strayed far from our ancestors way of life where movement was the norm. And so, sitting for long periods of time is now linked with a number of health concerns.

Metabolic syndrome — a cluster of conditions that includes increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess body fat around the waist and abnormal cholesterol levels. Too much sitting also seems to increase the risk of death from cardiovascular disease and cancer.

Depression…The list of ills goes on and on…. With hours and hours of sitting associated with higher sickness and mortality rates, who wouldn’t be depressed? The news is both terrifying and disheartening but knowing about the risks isn’t the reason frequent sitters are more often depressed. Sitting reduces circulation it’s harder for “feel-good hormones” to make their way to receptors.

Would you believe… frequent Sitters are also susceptible to Muscular Issues. Muscles are healthiest when they are being used and challenged on a regular basis, so it’s not surprising that staying seated for eight or nine hours a day might bring some negative repercussions. Muscles are pliable but when locked in sitting position for the majority of the day, everyday, they do get stiff. After years of constantly sitting the body is used to sitting and not as proficient at running, jumping or even standing. This might be part of the reason elderly people have such a hard time getting around later in life!

Prolonged Sitting Increases the Risk of Developing Type 2 Diabetes. Sitting for extended periods effects blood sugar levels and insulin in the body, meaning not only are sedentary people more likely to be obese, but they are also more likely to develop type 2 diabetes.

Sitting Increases the Risk of Obesity. It’s widely known that exercise and a healthy diet are two major factors in maintaining a healthy weight, but there is a third important factor for weight control, according to researchers at the Mayo Clinic—moving throughout the day.

Frequent Sitters Have a Greater Risk of Developing Heart Disease research has found that men and women who sat more than six hours a day died earlier than their counterparts who limited sitting time to 3 hours a day or less.

Effects Enzyme Breakdown…..LPL or lipoprotein lipase is an enzyme that breaks down fat and uses it as energy, when the enzyme isn’t working as it should, that fat is stored and results in weight gain.

So now you know, next question that comes to mind is what can YOU do about it?

Don’t despair there is plenty! Let’s start with… Sit less, move more, move as often as possible even if you huff and puff sometimes!

Keith Diaz, the lead researcher on the study has said the following: “We think a more specific guideline could read something like, ‘For every 30 consecutive minutes of sitting, stand up and move/walk for five minutes at brisk pace to reduce the health risks from sitting,’ ” he said, adding the study “puts us a step closer to such guidelines,” but more research is needed to verify the findings.

Here are some ideas to help get you moving:

Leave the car at home, why not walk or cycle

If it’s a long trip, walk or cycle part of the way

Always used the stairs instead of the elevator or escalator, or even just walk up the escalator

Get off the bus one stop earlier and walk the rest of the way.

You can also be more active at work, YES you can move around way more then you think:

Take the stairs instead of the elevator

Walk over and talk to your colleagues instead of emailing them.

Take your lunch break away from your desk and even go for a short walk outside

Why not organize a “walking” meeting instead of the usual sitting around a table meeting!

Stand up while you read emails or reports.

Move your garbage bin away from your desk so you have to get up to throw anything away.

Use the speaker phone for conference calls and walk around the room during the calls.

Reduce sitting even at home… you can make some small changes that can get you moving!

How about when tidying up, put items away in small trips rather than taking it all together!

Walk around when you’re on the phone

Stand up and do some ironing

Rather than sitting to read, listen to recorded books while you walk, clean or work in the garden

DON’T let the weather ever stop you from being active. There are lots of indoor activities such as swimming, yoga, Pilates, martial arts, and squash, even indoor running tracks all which will keep you active when the weather doesn’t allow you to be outdoors.

So, my message to you is plain and simple…. let’s start sitting less and moving more, take care of your health and you will reap the benefits of a long healthy and happy life for what you invest in your health you will get ten-fold in return!