The Reasons Why Prolonged Sitting Could Kill You and How to Avoid the Health Dangers of Sitting Too Much

Are the health dangers of prolonged sitting a real worry?

Many of us now devote a lot of our day sitting at computers or driving in our cars; we now spend more time in this position than at any time in the past. You only have to look at the obesity epidemic to see where this is all leading. Most of us now have no problem agreeing that too little exercise is bad for the body. There is much evidence to suggest that the body is designed for movement and prolonged sitting could kill you. The health dangers of sitting too much seem almost a certainty and we need to do all we can to avoid them.

What exactly are the health dangers of sitting down too much?

- Sitting down a lot puts causes the body to become idle and this increases the risk of heart disease. A study in Canada by Pennington Biomedical Research centre found that the more people sat the more likely they were to develop cardiac problems; this was quite a large study involving 17,000 people over twelve years.

- Prolonged sitting can increase our risk of type two diabetes

- Sitting too much can cause back and shoulder pain

- There is also a lot of evidence to suggest that too much sitting could increase our chances of osteoporosis

How to avoid the dangers associated with prolonged sitting

A worrying conclusion of a lot of research is that even those of us who exercise everyday might still be at risk of prolonged sitting. Apparently even exercising for an hour in the gym is not going to make up for all those hours sitting down. There are things you can do though, to help combat the risks associated with our time spend idle.

- Get up from your seat and move around for a few minutes every half an hour. Maybe do a few stretches or even go through a Tai Chi routine or adopt a yoga posture.

- Sit on an exercise ball instead of a chair. This is not always the most comfortable position to hold but you don't have to do it all the time. You could just replace your chair with the ball for a half an hour here and there.

- Stand up as much as possible and make it so that you have to get up from your chair. Leave files out of reach and keep the coffee pot as far away from your desk as possible.

- Learn some exercises that you can do at your desk. This could be as simple as tapping your feet on the floor or raising your hands above your head for so many sets.

The dangers of prolonged sitting are too serious to ignore for those of us who spend a lot of time at the computer. Implementing some of the above suggestions could save our health.

Sources

http://www.usatoday.com/news/health/painter/2010-02-01-yourhealth01_ST_N.htm

http://walking.about.com/od/goodmedicine/a/sitting092007.htm

http://www.webmd.com/fitness-exercise/features/exercise-at-your-desk