The Debate Continues over Sitting and Its Effects on Mortality

In this study, researchers aimed to determine the association between sedentary behavior and physical activity on mortality and to estimate the effects of replacing sitting with standing, physical activity and sleep. Participants included 149,077 Australian men and women aged 45 years and older who were asked to complete a questionnaire that determined how many hours per day an individual spent sitting, standing and sleeping. They also were questioned about the total time spent walking or participating in moderate or vigorous physical activity. After a median follow up time of 8.9 years for all-cause mortality and 7.4 years for cardiovascular disease mortality, higher sitting times (more than six hours) were associated with higher all-cause and cardiovascular disease mortality risks, but mostly in those did not meet physical activity recommendations. Meeting even the lowest requirements for physical activity eliminated the association with all-cause mortality risk, with the exception of those who sat the most (more than 8 hours a day). Compared to those who were highly active and sat for less than four hours per day, the risk remained substantially elevated even among physically inactive participants who sat for 4 hours per day only. While replacing sitting with standing was associated with risk reduction in low sitters, replacing sitting with physical activity was more consistently associated with risk reduction in high sitters. The researchers found that moder...
Source: Fight Aging! - Category: Research Authors: Tags: Daily News Source Type: blogs