More sit cause, the higher risk of death,,,,,,,,,,,
According to research by the American Cancer Society (ACS), the time people spend sitting down is associated with an increased risk of mortality – regardless of their physical activity level.
The findings – that have just been published in an early online edition of the American Journal of Epidemiology – suggest public health messages should promote both physical activity and less time on the couch.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), more than 50 per cent of men and women in the UAE are overweight or obese.
In a recent report by The Bulletin, the WHO’s International Journal of Public Health, this worrying figure has been attributed to “high incomes and a taste for fast food and sugary drinks”, as well as “low levels of exercise and overeating the wrong foods”.
While previous studies have supported a link between sitting time and obesity, diabetes, risk factors for cardiovascular disease risk and unhealthy dietary patterns in children and adults, very few studies have examined time spent sitting in relation to total mortality.
Which is why public health guidelines focus largely on increasing physical activity with little or no reference to how much time should be spent sitting down or lounging on the couch at home.
Alpa Patel, a researcher at the ACS, and his colleagues analysed survey responses from 123,216 individuals (53,440 men and 69,776 women) who had no history of cancer, heart attack, stroke or emphysema that were enrolled in the ACS's Cancer Prevention II study in 1992.
Participants were followed from 1993 to 2006.
The researchers examined the participants' amount of time spent sitting and physical activity in relation to mortality over the 13-year period.
They found that more leisure time spent sitting was associated with higher risk of mortality, particularly in women.
Women who reported more than six hours per day of sitting (outside of work) were 37 per cent more likely to die during the time period studied than those who sat fewer than three hours a day.
Men who sat more than six hours a day (also outside of work) were 18 per cent more likely to die than those who sat fewer than three hours per day.
The association remained virtually unchanged after adjusting for physical activity level.
Associations were stronger for cardiovascular disease mortality than for cancer mortality.
When combined with a lack of physical activity, the association was even stronger.
Women and men who both sat more and were less physically active were 94 per cent and 48 per cent more likely to die during the study period, respectively, compared with those who reported sitting the least and being most active.
Patel said: “Several factors could explain the positive association between time spent sitting and higher all-cause death rates
