Sitting Kills, Suggests Cardiovascular Study

Now sitting isn't what you'd call sitting pretty. In fact, just plonking down on one spot for long leads to coronary artery calcification, which indicates heart problems, according to dnaindia.com.

A team of scientists found that there is no link between coronary artery calcification and the amount of exercise you get. Hence, sitting beyond a limit might leave a greater impact than exercise on this part of the heart. Exercise may not be able to counteract the negative effects of a sedentary lifestyle on coronary artery calcium.

As study probing into 41 international studies by Toronto researchers found that the amount of time a person sits during the day is associated with a higher risk of heart disease, diabetes, cancer and death, regardless of regular exercise, according to cbc.ca.

"More than one half of an average person's day is spent being sedentary - sitting, watching television or working at a computer," said Dr. David Alter, a senior scientist at the Toronto Rehabilitation Institute, who helmed the analysis.

Jacquelyn Kulinski, M.D., a lead author of the study, pointed out that just reducing the amount of sitting per day can reduce cardiovascular risk. Recent studies link excessive sitting with greater exposure to cardiovascular disease, diabetes, cancer and early death. Called "sitting disease," it is more of a lifestyle risk factor, not really a "true medical condition".

The study thus gives a link between sitting and heart disease, which lays the foundation for future studies that could probe whether changing your habits could counter the damage before you develop full-blown heart disease.

While examining heart scans and physical activity records of more than 2,000 adults in Dallas, the scientists discovered that every hour of sitting per day showed a 14 percent increase in coronary artery calcification burden. However, the link was independent of exercise activity and related heart disease risk factors.

As the study gave a positive message, it showed that reduction in the time taken by a person, even by one or two hours, could have an effect on cardiovascular health, said Kulinski.

Most people are "slowly dying" from "the sitting disease". One professor has even pointed out that chairs kill more people than smoking, according to dailymail. Hence, if you plonk down on your butt after a meal, your blood sugar could shoot, while a 15-minute walk at one mile per hour after a meal could halve your blood sugar level.

The research will be presented at the American College of Cardiology's 64th Annual Scientific Session.