Sitting for extended periods can harm the heart and accelerate ageing, even if you are young and get the minimum recommended amount of daily exercise, according to a US study published in the journal PLOS One.
To study the impact of prolonged sitting on two key measures of heart and metabolic ageing, such as cholesterol and body mass index in young adults, researchers used data from more than 1,000 adults, including 730 twins, average age 33. On average, participants were sitting almost nine hours every day, with some even sitting up to 16 hours. They engaged in about 80 to 160 minutes of moderate physical activity per week or less than 135 minutes of vigorous exercise weekly. The study found that heart ageing increased as the hours spent sitting increased.
Meeting the minimum daily exercise recommendation of about 20 minutes of moderate exercise did not counter the negative impact of sitting. Young adults who sat 8.5 hours per day but met current exercise recommendations still had moderate to high risk for cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
Engaging in vigorous exercise such as running or cycling for about 30 or more minutes per day did help counteract the harms from sitting. But even that did not fully erase the negative impacts of prolonged sitting. “Young adults tend to think they are impervious to the impact of ageing. But what you do during this critical time of life matters,”the study said. “Our research suggests that sitting less throughout the day, getting more vigorous exercise, or a combination of both may be necessary to reduce the risk of premature ageing in early adulthood.”
