Is “sitting the new smoking” like some believe it to be? Read more to find out whether sitting is actually bad for your health.
Yesterday, wanting to be super productive, I spent all day sitting in front of my computer writing a blog post. When I finally stood up, I felt lightheaded, I had severe lower back pain, my neck felt strained, and my hips were tight. This prompted me to question whether sitting is bad for your health.
Because I read somewhere that “sitting is the new smoking”. Was I really slowing sitting my way to poorer health yesterday?
Like many others, when I am writing I spend a good chunk of my day every day sitting. Though I try to take frequent breaks and I stay active outside of work, there’s no way around the fact that I idle for more hours than not every day.
So, how much merit is there equating desk chairs to cigarettes? Because smoking is more of a choice since no one needs to smoke. But practically everyone needs to sit – and for some, longer than others.
How much sitting is too much sitting? And if sitting is bad for our health, why?
How Much Time Do We Spend Sitting?
Be honest, how much of your day do you spend sitting? For me, it was not very much pre-pandemic. Because when I was going into work, for most days of the week I would spend a good portion of my day standing at the lab bench. However, since the pandemic, because I am no longer leaving home for work, I am sitting in front of my computer for a large portion of my day every day. Which I suspect is the norm for most people nowadays.
But even pre-pandemic, many people spent most of their day sitting. Whether they are sitting on their commute to work, sitting at their desk working, sitting while reading, watching television, or just relaxing by the pool.
A lot of people’s everyday environments and activities are tailored nearly exclusively to long stretches of sitting. As a result, sedentary behaviours make up a huge chunk of their waking day.
Findings from a study estimate that the average Canadian adult’s sedentary behaviour is around 9.5 hours per day pre-pandemic. This daily sedentary time is likely to be even higher now because of the pandemic.
There’s no doubt that many of us are spending a huge block of our day sitting. Other than the sore lower back and the need to stretch after a long period of sitting, how does sitting lead to poor health?
Is Sitting Bad For Your Health?
It all started with the idea that “sitting is the new smoking”, which is credited to Dr. James Levine. He’s an endocrinologist and obesity researcher at the Mayo Clinic. In his book “Get up!” he claims that we lose 2 hours of life for every hour we spend sitting.
Dr. Levine’s book sparked a slew of studies to be conducted looking at the effects of sitting on health outcomes. There are even some studies that suggest “sitting is probably killing you slowly”. The reason for this is because prolonged sitting may cause a range of health issues. Health problems that include heart disease and obesity-related conditions. In addition to that, sitting has been shown to worsen type 2 diabetes. Because too much sitting can cause issues with blood sugar levels, which is problematic for people with this health condition.
Sitting for long periods maybe be harmful to your health
So, there’s no debate here that sitting for long bouts at a time is doing nothing to improve your health. You are bound to stand up after sitting for a few hours feeling sore and achy. But is it actually the sitting that increases your risk of health problems? Or is it the fact that if you are sitting, you are not moving?
And that’s the crux of the problem. Turns out, it is not so much the sitting that is strongly associated with poor health. But rather, it is that prolonged sitting prevents you from any physical activity. And so, the sedentary behaviour is actually what is leading to health problems. I discuss the importance of physical activity for your overall health in previous posts – read it here and here.
Leisure Time Sitting Is The Culprit
The idea that sitting might be the new smoking is probably more worrisome for those of us who have no choice but to sit for long periods at work. But in fact, there is evidence suggesting that it is more leisure time sitting rather than sitting during work that leads to poor health. In a 15-year study of over 10,000 adults in Denmark found that hours sitting during work was not associated with an increased risk of heart disease. A second study of 66,000 adults in Japan also had similar findings.
In both studies, the authors concluded that it is not desk chairs per se that led to heart disease. But rather, it is that sitting too much is bad for you if you also don’t exercise. Because in both studies, people who sit for 9 to 10 hours a day for work were also very active outside of work.
Both studies highlighted that if you sit while commuting to work, sitting at your desk while you work, and then spending the remainder of your evening sitting on the couch, you are not getting in very much movement or physical activity in your day.
Whereas, for those study participants who sat for 9 to 10 hours of their work day, but were physically active outside of work, they appeared to be in better health than those who were also sedentary outside of work.
Because being physically active outside of work combatted the inactivity during work.
It’s Not Sitting But Rather Physical Inactivity That Is Bad For Your Health
We all know that physical activity has significant positive effects on our health. And here’s the evidence for that. In a large scale study examining more that 130,000 participants from more than 17 countries estimated that 1 in 12 deaths could be prevented if they exercised for just 30 minutes per day, 5 days per week. And just light to moderate intensity exercises were sufficient.
Exercise prevents many chronic diseases. Disease such as diabetes, strokes, cancer, heart disease, and obesity. The reason is because movement that raises your heart rate for about 30 consecutive minutes improves your cardiopulmonary (CP) fitness level. And your CP fitness level is a measure of how efficiently the oxygen in your blood moves into your organs and tissues throughout your body. Put more simply, because exercise causes your heart to pump faster, you are essentially pushing more oxygen-carrying blood to flow to your tissues and organs. This, in turn, delivers more oxygen to every cell in your body. The more oxygen in your cells the better it functions. And it has been shown that the higher your fitness level, the lower your chances of heart disease and cancer.
In contrast, another study has shown that the less movement you get in a day, the greater your risk is of type 2 diabetes. This was not shown to be directly linked to sitting. But rather, many people who are sedentary are engaging in leisure activities that require long stretches of sitting. Activities such as watching tv or scrolling through Instagram, which prevents them from any movement at all. In addition to that, these leisure activities are conducive to other unhealthy behaviours. Behaviours such as mindless binge snacking or drinking.
Sprinkle In Some Movement
In the same study, the researcher found that sprinkling in frequent bouts of movement – like getting up to stretch or to grab water – can reduce your risk of type 2 diabetes. The reason is movement activates your muscles. Even with light activity, such as walking to the bathroom or getting a glass of water or stretching for 2 minutes. Your muscles will use the sugar and fat that is in your bloodstream from your meals as energy to perform those movements. This, in essence, lowers your blood sugar level.
Whereas with long periods of time where you are not moving, those sugars and fats from your meals stay in your bloodstream for longer. As a result, your blood sugar levels remain elevated leading to a higher risk of developing type 2 diabetes.
Even for those who spend 8 to 9 hours sitting for work, you can lower your overall risk of disease by simply getting up and moving more often.
Get up every 12 minutes
In another study researchers found that for people who get up every 12 minutes have a much lower risk of chronic disease. This is compared to those who sit for upwards of 30 minutes at a time. That’s pretty worrisome because an episode of friends is 30 minutes! Even when both groups of people sit for the same amount of total time each day, getting up every 12 minutes made a difference in their disease risk. The reason is with every bit of movement, you are basically “turning on” your muscles more often. Thus, lowering your blood sugar levels.
Is A Standing Desk The Hero?
I have a standing desk and I use it quite a bit when I write. That is, when I start feeling a bit tight in my lower back and remember to use it. It does lessen my back pain and tight hips. So, there is no doubt that intermittently standing while working is beneficial. Because you have to engage some muscles to stay upright. Thus, a standing desk might have the same positive effect as getting up from your desk chair every so often.
A standing desk is not the magic pill
The problem is most people tend to overestimate the potential benefits of a standing desk. Because standing desks are often marketed as a weight loss tool, some people think their standing desk replaces the need for movement. And this is simply not the case. Standing burns only 8 more calories per hour than sitting.
Also, standing for long periods of time without moving can actually lead to inflammation of the veins and strain on your joints, such as your knees, hips, and spine.
Lastly, there haven’t been any high-quality studies showing standing desks reduces the risk of chronic diseases. Because standing for long periods of time is only slightly better than sitting. You are still idling when standing for long periods.
While alternating between sitting and standing during your work day may provide some back pain and muscle tension relief, it is not a magic bullet. Meaning that a standing desk does not replace the need for movement during work and physical activity outside of work.
The Bottom Line
Sitting is not the new smoking. It’s not even close to that. Because it is possible to sit for 9 to 10 hours a day and still get your recommended amount of physical activity outside of work. This will also keep your risk of chronic diseases low. Of course, this is granted that you are also engaging in other healthy behaviours, like eating high-fibre, nutrient-dense foods, getting enough sleep, not smoking, managing stress, and only indulging in occasional drinks.
With that said, however, don’t throw away the idea that too much sitting might be harmful for you just yet. Because it is absolutely true that physical activity is good for you. But also that too much sitting, which leads to too much inactivity, is bad for you.
And so, if you are sitting for a large chunk of your work day, rest assured that you are not sitting yourself to heart disease or diabetes. But know that if you are also then sitting for most of your evening when you get home, you are sitting too much. And as a result, you are not getting enough physical activity in your day.
So, make small changes in your daily work habits and get up and move every 15 minutes. And also, keep moving when you get home. And those simple habits to move more are the key to sitting not being bad for your health!
