Live Longer by Sitting Less, Researchers Find

Are you sitting down?

You might want to stand up before you read any further.

Researcher have found that cutting down the time you spend seated every day to less than three hours may give you an extra two years of life, according to an analysis of published research in the online journal BMJ Open.

Want to possibly extend your lifespan by almost 1.4 years? Keep your TV viewing to less than two hours a day, according to a news release from BMJ Open.

Researchers based their findings on data collected for the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey for 2005-2006 and 2009-2010. The NHANES surveys the U.S. population on health and lifestyle behaviors.

So does this mean that sitting down and watching TV shorten your lifespan?

No, the analysis does not prove that at all.

However, previous research has shown that a sedentary lifestyle can have a negative effect on a person’s health.

Most of us know that anyway. Exercising – whether it’s walking around the neighborhood or running on a treadmill – makes us feel good and helps us maintain a healthy weight.

“The results of this study indicate that extending sitting time and TV viewing may have the potential to reduce life expectancy in the USA,” the authors stated in the news release. “Given that the results from objective monitoring of sedentary time in NHANES has indicated that adults spend an average of 55 percent of their day engaged in sedentary pursuits, a significant shift in behavior change at the population level is required to make demonstrable improvements in life expectancy.”

Additionally, the authors noted that their “analysis assumes a causal association rather than proving that there is one,” the news release states.

Source: BMJ Open news release

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