Nikhil Prasad Fact checked by:Thailand Medical News Team Nov 16, 2024 2 hours, 3 minutes ago
Health News: New research highlights the dangers of prolonged sitting or lying down, even for those who engage in regular exercise. The study, conducted by researchers from Massachusetts General Hospital (USA), Brigham and Women’s Hospital (USA), the University Heart and Vascular Center Hamburg-Eppendorf (Germany), and the University of Helsinki (Finland), reveals a stark connection between sedentary behavior and the risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) or dying from it.
Prolonged sitting increases risk of heart disease even for those that exercise
Image: AI-Generated
The study focused on sedentary behavior and its link to cardiovascular health. This
Health News report delves into the findings, explaining why limiting sedentary time is critical for heart health.
A Threshold for Risk
The study tracked 89,530 participants from the UK Biobank, averaging 62 years old, over eight years. Participants wore wrist-mounted accelerometers to measure movement and sedentary time over seven days. On average, participants spent 9.4 hours per day sitting or reclining. Researchers found that spending over 10.6 hours a day sedentary significantly increased the risk of heart failure and cardiovascular death.
For conditions like atrial fibrillation (AF) and myocardial infarction (MI), risk steadily increased with more sedentary time. However, for heart failure (HF) and cardiovascular mortality, the risk remained minimal until sedentary time exceeded 10.6 hours, after which it surged significantly. This pattern suggests a "threshold effect," where risks intensify sharply beyond a critical limit.
Exercise May Not Fully Offset Sedentary Risks
Although current guidelines recommend at least 150 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity per week, the study found that meeting this benchmark does not completely eliminate the risks associated with excessive sedentary time. While regular exercise reduced the impact of sedentary behavior on atrial fibrillation and myocardial infarction, its effects on heart failure and cardiovascular mortality were less pronounced.
Dr. Shaan Khurshid, MD, MPH, co-senior author and a cardiologist at Massachusetts General Hospital, emphasized that “too much sitting or lying down can be harmful for heart health, even for those who are active.” He added, “Future guidelines should stress the importance of reducing sedentary time alongside promoting regular exercise.”
Replace Sitting with Activity
In an editorial accompanying the study, Dr. Charles Eaton, Director of the Brown University Department of Family Medicine, noted that wearable accelerometers provide more accurate data than self-reported activity levels, which often overestimate exercise and underestimate sedentary time.
Dr. Eaton highlighted that replacing just 30 minutes of daily sitting with any physical activity can significantly lower heart risks. Moderate-to-vigo
rous activity reduced the risk of heart failure by 15% and cardiovascular death by 10%. Even light activities, such as walking, decreased the risk of heart failure by 6% and cardiovascular death by 9%.
“This study provides compelling evidence that small changes in daily habits can have profound effects on heart health,” he explained.
Why Sedentary Time Matters
Sedentary behavior may harm cardiovascular health in ways beyond its link to insufficient exercise. Prolonged sitting or lying down can reduce blood circulation, increase inflammation, and contribute to metabolic imbalances. These factors collectively heighten the risk of cardiovascular diseases.
The study also points to the limitations of physical activity guidelines that focus exclusively on exercise. Current recommendations fail to account for the large portion of the day people spend sedentary, often at work, watching TV, or engaging in other stationary activities.
Key Findings in Numbers
-Participants and Monitoring: 89,530 participants with an average sedentary time of 9.4 hours/day.
-Outcomes: Over eight years, 4.9% developed atrial fibrillation, 2.1% experienced heart failure, 1.84% suffered a heart attack, and 0.94% died of cardiovascular causes.
-Threshold Effect: Sedentary time above 10.6 hours/day sharply increased heart failure risk by 45% and cardiovascular mortality risk by 62%.
-Reallocating Time: Replacing 30 minutes of sedentary time with light activity reduced heart failure risk by 7% and cardiovascular death risk by 9%.
Addressing Sedentary Habits
Reducing sedentary time is essential for everyone, not just those at risk for heart disease. Simple strategies include:
-Frequent Movement Breaks: Stand or walk for a few minutes every hour.
-Active Workspaces: Use standing desks or take walking meetings.
-Reduce Screen Time: Limit TV and recreational screen use.
-Daily Walks: Incorporate short walks into your routine, even if it’s just around the house.
Dr. Harlan M. Krumholz, Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of the American College of Cardiology, concluded, “We need to get people moving to promote better health. The evidence is clear that sedentary behavior is a major, modifiable risk factor for heart disease.”
Study Limitations
The study has some limitations, such as its reliance on wrist-worn accelerometers, which may misclassify standing time as sedentary. Additionally, it did not account for the specific contexts in which sedentary behavior occurred, such as at work versus leisure. Despite these caveats, the findings offer actionable insights into reducing heart risks.
Conclusion
The research underscores that cutting back on sedentary time is just as crucial as regular exercise for cardiovascular health. A daily sedentary time of less than 10.6 hours may serve as a practical target for reducing heart disease risks. While exercise helps mitigate some dangers, replacing sedentary time with any physical activity is key to optimizing heart health.
The study findings were published in the peer-reviewed Journal of the American College of Cardiology.
https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/abs/pii/S0735109724099200
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