Don’t smoke, don’t drink or eat to excess — these are health mantras most of us are familiar with. And more recently there’s another one to add to this list: don’t sit for too long. This advice reflects a growing understanding that sitting really is bad for our health — in fact, in 2014, Dr James Levine, a professor of medicine at the Mayo Clinic in the US coined the phrase “‘sitting is the new smoking” to reflect the emerging evidence linking being sedentary with ill-health.
Some studies suggest people who spend six to eight hours sitting each day have a 20 per cent higher risk of premature death from any cause. Journalism for the curious Australian across politics, business, culture and opinion. But why would sitting cause health problems? It’s thought to be because sitting for prolonged periods puts your body into “standby’ — your metabolism slows, circulation is constricted by folded joints and your ability to process sugar in the blood is compromised (inactive muscles don’t take up as much blood sugar as active muscles).
This leads to an increased risk of heart problems, obesity and type 2 diabetes. Being sedentary for too long may also trigger mechanical problems, causing tightness and pain in the back, neck and shoulder muscles. Meanwhile, how we sit can have an impact: excessive slouching in a chair — particularly after a meal — can put pressure on the abdomen leading to heartburn as stomach acid travels back up into the oesophagus.
Sit.
