Too Much Sitting Can Kill You

It’s not just how much physical activity a person gets, it’s how much time spent sitting that increases the risk of death, U.S. researchers say.

Researchers at the American Cancer Society say time spent sitting was independently associated with total mortality, regardless of physical activity level.

Study leader Alpa Patel and colleagues analyzed survey responses from 53,440 men and 69,776 women who had no history of cancer, heart attack, stroke or emphysema /other lung disease enrolled in the American Cancer Society’s Cancer Prevention II study in 1992.

The study finds women who said they spent 6 hours per day sitting during leisure time were 37 percent more likely to die during the time period studied — 1993 to 2006 — than those who sat fewer than 3 hours a day, while men who sat more than 6 hours a day were 18 percent more likely to die than those who sat fewer than 3 hours per day.

In addition, the study says women and men who both sat more during their leisure time and were less physically active were 94 percent and 48 percent more likely, respectively, to die compared with those who reported sitting the least and being most active. (Yahoo News)