Jul 26, 2011
Most people think that if you exercise regularly, it’s okay to remain sedentary for the rest of the day. However, research shows that even if you exercise for an hour a day for five days a week, if you spend 40 hours or more per week sitting (at work and at home watching TV), you are at risk for dangerous diseases. Current research shows that even exercise can’t protect you from the ill effects of sitting too much. The amount of time you exercise and the amount of time you spend sitting are completely separate factors in risk for heart disease.
In a 14-year study of over 1,20,000 people with no history of lung disease, heart attack, stroke or cancer, researchers found that those who spent the most time sitting — regardless of exercise — had the highest death rate. Sitting had negative effects on fat and cholesterol metabolism. Prolonged sitting has effects on health that even exercise cannot combat. These include:
* Deep Vein Thrombosis: When you sit for long periods, your calf muscles don’t contract and circulate blood causing blood clots that get painful and swollen. Worse still, these clots can break off and cause a stroke.
* Diabetes: The less you move, the less blood sugar your body uses. For every two hours you spend sitting each day, your risk of diabetes increases by 7 per cent.
* Heart Disease: Without blood circulation, enzymes that break down fat in the blood (triglycerides) switch off, increasing blood pressure and fat buildup in the arteries.
Technology has made it possible to sit through life. Nowadays, you can shop, pay bills and visit with friends on the computer - all without even standing up! Just a few generations ago, our ancestors were more active in a day than we are in a month!
The author is the chairman and founder of Uforia Centre for Integrated Medicine in Bengaluru. He can be reached at suresh. shottam@uforiawellness.com
By Dr Suresh Shottam
