5 problems a sedentary lifestyle causes and how to solve them

What problems does a sedentary lifestyle cause?

1. Weight gain

The movement causes the tissues in your body to produce an enzyme called lipoprotein lipase, which controls the amount of lipids in your blood and helps metabolize the fats and sugars absorbed from food. A sedentary lifestyle leads Static mechanical stretching accelerates lipid production in 3T3 ‑ L1 adipocytes by activating the MEK signaling pathway to a lack of this enzyme, which negatively affects Suppression of skeletal muscle lipoprotein lipase activity during physical inactivity: a molecular reason to maintain daily low ‑ intensity activity on the body's ability to burn fat. And as a result, you start to get fat.

Long sitting increases the Definition of Metabolic Syndrome: Report of the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute / American Heart Association Conference on Scientific Issues Related to Definition the risk of metabolic syndrome. This is especially true for Metabolic Responses to Reduced Daily Steps in Healthy Nonexercising Men on people who not only sit for a long time, but also do not play sports.

However, even people far from sports can burn extra calories when they walk, stand or even fidget, but do not sit. Interindividual variation in posture allocation: possible role in human obesity is motionless. Therefore, if you have the opportunity to just get up and walk during the working day, then at least do this.

2. Risk of early death

Health observations of about one million people have shown that people who sit a lot are more likely to die at an early age. In fact, the risk of early death in sedentary lifestyles increases Sedentary Time and Its Association With Risk for Disease Incidence, Mortality, and Hospitalization in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis, Sitting time and all-cause mortality risk in 222 497 Australian adults 22–49%.

The World Health Organization reports to Global Strategy on Diet, Physical Activity and Health that physical inactivity is responsible for 6% of deaths worldwide. According to the WHO, a sedentary lifestyle is the leading cause of approximately 21–25% of breast and colon cancers, 27% of diabetes and approximately 30% of coronary heart disease.

3. Diabetes and heart disease

Researchers have linked sedentary time in adults and the association with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and death: systematic review and meta-analysis of a sedentary lifestyle with nearly 30 chronic diseases. In particular, prolonged sitting increases the Sedentary Behaviors Increase Risk of Cardiovascular Disease Mortality in Men the risk of developing heart disease. In addition, if you do not get up for a long time and walk less than 1,500 steps per day, the body increases A 2-wk reduction of ambulatory activity attenuates peripheral insulin sensitivity, Effects of 1 day of inactivity on insulin action in healthy men and women: interaction with energy intake insulin resistance, which is Physical Inactivity Rapidly Induces Insulin Resistance and Microvascular Dysfunction in Healthy Volunteers the main cause of type 2 diabetes.

4. Pain in bones and muscles

If you sit in an uncomfortable chair for a long time, then you are probably already familiar with back and neck pain. Lack of physical activity negatively affects the bones of the spine and back muscles of The Key Role of the Blood Supply to Bone, and this leads National Health Statistics Reports to chronic pain that makes it difficult to move later.

The end result is a vicious circle: your muscles ache because you move a little, and you move a little because your muscles ache.

5. Depression and anxiety

Researchers have linked long sitting to the development of depression and anxiety. According to The Impact of Sitting Time and Physical Activity on Major Depressive Disorder in South Korean Adults: A Cross-Sectional Study of Specialists from South Korea, people sitting 8-10 hours a day are more likely to develop a major depressive disorder than those who spend only 5 hours in this position. And according to psychologists Sitting-time, physical activity, and depressive symptoms in mid-aged women, Non-occupational sitting and mental well-being in employed adults, the chances of depression with an inactive lifestyle triple.

In addition, lack of physical activity leads to increased stress in Cross-sectional associations between sitting at work and psychological distress: Reducing sitting time may benefit mental health. Employees who are engaged in sedentary work for more than 6 hours a day tend to overexert themselves faster and endure unpleasant situations harder.

How to avoid problems

Obviously, you need to sit less and move more. Consider, however, a significant nuance. According to the experiment Minimal intensity physical activity (standing and walking) of longer duration improves insulin action and plasma lipids more than shorter periods of moderate to vigorous exercise (cycling) in sedentary subjects when energy expenditure is comparable, conducted by the specialists of the Maastricht University Medical Center, short hour peak loads do not compensate for the previous long hours of motionless sitting.

Another study, Sedentary Time and Its Association With Risk for Disease Incidence, Mortality, and Hospitalization in Adults: A Systematic Review and Meta-analysis, showed that sitting for a long time is harmful, no matter what physical activity you put yourself into after.

So even if you regularly go to the gym after a sedentary work, it will not really improve the situation.

Dr. James Levine, a researcher at the Mayo Clinic in Minnesota, coined the term Nonexercise activity thermogenesis (NEAT): environment and biology “daily activity thermogenesis” (NEAT) is the energy we expend in all our activities except sleep, food, and exercise. Walking, standing, stretching, and even cleaning the kitchen and washing the dishes - in general, small but regular movements - are better at resisting The Role of Non-exercise Activity Thermogenesis in Human Obesity than intense training alone.

Dr. Edward Lasovsky of the American Board of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation recommends What are the risks of sitting too much? regularly resort to the following measures.

Get up and walk around your room or office at least every 30 minutes.
Watch TV or talk on the phone while standing. You will win twice: firstly, get the necessary physical activity, and secondly, reduce the time for chatting and TV, because hardly anyone can do it while standing for hours.
Go to live meetings with colleagues instead of sitting in front of monitors in the conference room.
If you work at a desk, try giving up a chair. Buy a height-adjustable desk and do your business while standing. Some also manage to work while walking on a treadmill.

According to Physical activity, any type or amount, cuts health risk from sitting researchers at Columbia University's Irving Medical Center, even light, but constant physical activity will be enough to reduce the risk of premature death by 17%, and if you still run and ride on a bike, then all 35. In general, just try to sit as little as possible.