DISTRICT OF COLUMBIA — Health experts have long warned against the perils of sitting all day, but a new study suggests the length of time spent inactive in between bouts of movement also matters.
According to the study published in Annals of Internal Medicine, hip-mounted accelerometers measured physical inactivity in nearly 8,000 Americans aged 45 years and older, for a period of 10 days. Researchers found that the participants were sedentary for 12.3 hours out of a 16-hour waking day.
When measuring bout length, it was discovered that subjects who sat for longer periods at a time were more likely to have died at the end of the study period than those with shorter sitting spells.
Findings indicate that moving around for every 30 consecutive minutes of inactivity may significantly decrease the risk for death.
The study did not explain how sitting increases early death, but experts suggest inactivity exposes the body to higher blood glucose levels, which leads to problems like diabetes, heart disease, or stroke.
Prolonged sitting may also weaken the abdominal muscles, hip flexors, and glutes.
It could also lead to a lack of circulation in the legs, potentially resulting in blood clots forming in the veins — a condition known as deep vein thrombosis.
Alas, working out after a long day of sitting in an office chair may not necessarily undo its ill effects. The best way to lengthen your lifespan, it seems, is to move about as often as you can.
