The Importance of Standing More, Sitting Less from Dr. Mercola
The Importance of Standing More, Sitting Less from Dr. Mercola
August 10, 2018 • 10,758views
Story at-a-glance
Over 300 joints
in your body make moving easier and more fluid, but the rising tide of
technology has increased the number of hours people spend sitting each
day
You can’t
out-exercise the number of hours you sit at work, in the car and in
front of the television, which increases your potential risk for heart
disease, diabetes, obesity and cancer
Data indicates
moving as little as 10 minutes for every hour of sitting may help reduce
negative effects; ideally you should be sitting no more than three
hours each day using correct posture to reduce strain on your lower back
and neck
Take a simple
sitting-rising test to find your fitness and balance levels and create a
movement-rich environment through strategies such as getting up to
drink every hour, moving frequently used items away from your desk, and
using an exercise ball chair
By Dr. Mercola
With over 300 joints, your body was made for movement. Although the
rising tide of technology has created an amazing number of ways to share
information, it has also increased the number of hours you remain
seated each day. It's likely by now most understand sitting glued to
your desk all day increases your risk of illness and early death.
Unfortunately, the average U.S. adult spends nine to 12 hours each day sitting,1,2 and a 60-minute workout cannot counteract the effects of this level of inactivity.3
Sitting is not inherently dangerous. The danger is in the amount of
time you spend sitting. Brief periods of sitting are natural, whereas
long periods can seriously impact your health and shorten your life.
Exercise Likely Not Enough to Offset Damage Done by Sitting All Day
A recent study in the Annals of Internal Medicine4
demonstrated that sitting for prolonged periods of time can indeed be
deadly. Even those who exercised heavily when they were not at the
office experienced a significantly increased risk of death when seated
for eight hours a day.
During the study, the team evaluated 8,000 Americans over the age of
45 for a four-year period. Participants wore accelerometers to track
their movements. The researchers found those who moved more were
healthier overall. However, they also found a correlation between death
rates of participants and how many hours they spent seated during the
day. In other words, there was a relationship between the time spent
seated and the risk of early mortality from any cause.5
Although the American Heart Association encourages sitting less and
moving more, the guideline maybe too simplistic. Keith Diaz, certified
exercise physiologist and lead author of the study at Columbia
University, believes this is like telling someone to exercise without
telling them how.6
Instead, guidelines should be precise, such as those by the U.S.
Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, which recommends
moderate-intensity aerobic exercise for 2.5 hours every week, plus strengthening activities two or more times a week. Diaz says:7“We
need similar guidelines for sitting. We think a more specific guideline
could read something like, ‘For every 30 consecutive minutes of
sitting, stand up and move or walk for five minutes at a brisk pace to
reduce the health risks from sitting.’”
Although previous studies found daily sitting time to average between nine and 10 hours per day,8 data analysis from this study found an average of 12.3 hours of sedentary behavior for an average 16-hour waking day.
As total sedentary time increased, so did early death by any cause,
regardless of the participants’ age, sex, race, body mass index or
exercise habits.9
The results indicated those who sat in stretches of less than 30
minutes had a 55 percent lower risk of death than those who sat for more
than 30 minutes at a stretch.
What Happens When You Sit for Long Periods of Time?
Sitting for long periods of time takes a toll on your body. Dr. James Levine,
codirector of the Mayo Clinic/Arizona State University Obesity
Initiative, and author of the book “Get Up! Why Your Chair Is Killing
You and What You Can Do About It,” has dedicated a good part of his
career to investigating the health effects of sitting.
His investigations demonstrate when you sit for long periods of time a
number of molecular cascades are initiated. Ninety seconds after
standing, muscular and cellular systems processing blood sugar,
triglycerides and cholesterol are activated, simply by carrying your own
body weight.
These cellular mechanisms are also responsible for pushing fuel into
your cells, and when done regularly, may radically reduce your risk of diabetes and obesity. In other words, while your joints make movement easier, your body enjoys benefits even at the molecular level.
Although many recommend standing for 10 minutes of every hour of
sitting, I believe this is the bare minimum and far from ideal. It seems
far wiser to strive to sit as little as possible each day. Here are
some things that may go wrong when you're parked in front of your desk
all day long.10
Heart
In the seated position, muscles burn less fat and blood flows more
sluggishly. Prolonged sitting has been linked to hypertension, and
research data demonstrates women who sit for 10 hours a day may have a
significantly greater risk of developing heart disease than those who
sit for five hours or less.11
Pancreas
Research has demonstrated those who sit for long periods of time are twice as likely to have diabetes or heart disease, compared to those who sit the least.12 Sitting eight hours a day has been associated with a 90 percent increased risk of Type 2 diabetes.13
Cancer
Sitting may increase your risk of colon, breast, lung,14
uterine and endometrial cancers. This increased risk may be due to an
excess insulin production encouraging cell growth, or a reduction in
protection from antioxidants regular movement boosts in your body.
Another risk may be related to weight gain and associated biochemical
changes, such as alterations in hormones, metabolic dysfunction, leptin
dysfunction and inflammation.
Digestion
Sitting after eating slows digestion and compresses your abdominal
contents. This in turn may lead to cramping, bloating, heartburn and
constipation, as well as dysbiosis in your gastrointestinal tract.
This is a condition created by microbial imbalances. According to Microbial Ecology in Health and Disease,15
there's growing evidence it is associated with pathogenesis of
intestinal and extra-intestinal disorders, including inflammatory bowel
disease, irritable bowel syndrome and celiac disease, as well as allergies, metabolic syndrome, cardiovascular disease and obesity.
Brain
Your brain function slows when your body is sedentary for too long.
Your brain will get less fresh blood and oxygen, which are needed to
trigger the release of brain- and mood-enhancing chemicals.
Posture
Many commonly sit with head and neck forward working at a computer or
cradling a phone. This leads to strain of your cervical vertebra, with
permanent imbalances, which can lead to neck strain, sore shoulders and
back. Sitting also increases pressure on your spine and the toll is
worse if you are sitting hunched over. It is estimated 40 percent of
people with back pain have spent long hours at their computer each day.
Muscles
Standing requires your core muscles to be engaged, which often go
unused when you sit in a slouched position. Your hips may also suffer,
becoming tight with limited range of motion as they are rarely extended.
This may lead to decreased mobility and falls in the elderly. Sitting
weakens your gluteal muscles, affecting your stability and the power of
your stride.
Legs
Sitting leads to poor circulation in your legs, causing swelling in your ankles, varicose veins
and blood clots known as deep vein thrombosis. Walking, running and
engaging in other weight-bearing activities increases your bone density
and reduces your risk for osteoporosis and bone fractures.
Sitting Right Requires Greater Muscle Activation and Reduces Pain and Strain
When you do sit, it’s important to sit with good posture.
This will help reduce problems with lower back pain, wrist strain and
other physical challenges associated with poor posture. However, while
using good sitting posture is important, it does not negate your need
for more movement. When sitting in a correct posture you:16
Sit with your back straight and your shoulders back, pulling your
shoulder blades down. Your buttocks should touch the back of your chair
and your head should remain upright, all of which engage your core
muscles. Distribute your body weight evenly over both hips, with your
knees bent at right angles, your feet flat to the floor. Do not cross
your knees. Avoid twisting at the waist while sitting, but instead turn
your whole body.
Place your computer screen at a height allowing your head to remain
level. This may mean getting an external keyboard to allow the keyboard
at hand level and the screen at eye level.
Avoid sitting for more than 20 minutes. Get up, walk, stretch or
walk briskly for several minutes. This not only helps to reduce the
effects of sitting, but it increases your blood flow and improves your
creativity.
When standing from the sitting position, move to the front of your
seat and then stand up by straightening your legs. Avoid bending forward
at your waist as this places additional pressure on your lower back.
Consider a lumbar roll or back support while driving. Your knees
should be at the same level or slightly higher than your hips. Move the
seat as close to the steering wheel as necessary to support the curve of
your back while keeping your elbows bent and your feet easily reaching
the pedals.
Create a Movement-Rich Environment
Foundation exercises, developed by chiropractor Dr. Eric Goodman, can
help counteract some of the damage caused by sitting. These exercises
are used by many professional and elite athletes but, more importantly,
they address the root cause of lower back pain related to weakness and
imbalance along your posterior chain of muscles.
This short video demonstrates “The Founder,” a key exercise that
helps reinforce proper movement while strengthening the entire back of
your body. There are a significant number of benefits to standing during
the day, including a slight rise in heart rate, calorie expenditure and
greater insulin sensitivity.17
In addition to reducing your risk for the health conditions listed
above, an increase in movement may add years to your life. Reducing the
time you spend sitting down each day to three hours or less could
increase your life expectancy by two years.18 Each hour watching television after age 25 reduces your life expectancy by nearly 22 minutes.19
Standing and moving also help improve weight management and
productivity. There are several ways to accomplish this at home and at
work requiring just a little creativity. Levine suggests walk-and-talk
meetings when company administration agrees.
You may also consider moving objects you commonly use out of reach so
you're required to get up if you need to throw something away or grab
something off the printer. Make a habit of drinking 4 to 6 ounces of
water every hour and place your container of pure, clean water from home
in the refrigerator. This way you'll have to get up to fill your glass
and will likely get up to use the bathroom on a more frequent basis.
Some companies are moving toward allowing employees to use standing desks
or treadmill desks. Rather than sitting all day, you have the option of
getting up and down. Keep in mind it may take a couple of weeks to
build the stamina to stand for several hours during the day. If your
employer is not open to a standing desk, consider standing at your desk
when speaking on the phone or when you otherwise do not need your
keyboard.
Ask your employer to consider an exercise ball chair. These are
chairs with an open seat bottom where a Swiss exercise ball can be
lodged. This provides you with an unstable platform on which to sit and
increases your core muscle engagement while sitting.
Although this next option does not offer additional weight bearing
and does not take the place of getting out of your chair, consider using
a seated pedal exerciser. This is an under-the-desk apparatus that
looks like the pedals on a bicycle and allows you to keep your legs
moving while seated. If used, it's important your chair is placed high
enough to ensure proper posture while seated.
The Simple Sitting-Rising Test You Can Do at Home Predicts Mortality
The ability to sit and rise from the floor may be able to predict your longevity over the next six years. Brazilian researchers20
developed a test different from the long-used chair test, in which
physicians gauge an elderly person's lower body strength by how well
they can stand up from a chair.
This new sitting-rising test is scored zero to 5 for each movement
(sitting and rising), with a combined score of 10 being the highest and
awarded only to those who can sit and rise from the floor without any
assistance from their hands or knees. The test is very simple: You sit
on and get up from the floor using as little assistance from your hands,
knees or other body parts as possible. For each body part you use for
support, you lose 1 point from the possible top score of 10.
For instance, if you put one hand on the floor to support yourself as
you sit down and then use a knee and a hand to help as you get up, you
lose 3 points for a combined score of 7. The scores correlated strongly
with mortality during the six year study. For each increase in score,
the participants gained a 21 percent improvement in survival.
Specifically:
Those who scored between zero and 3 were 6.5 times more likely to die during the study than those who scored between 8 and 10
Those who scored 3.5 to 5.5 were 3.8 times more likely to die
Those who scored 6 to 7.5 were 1.8 times more likely to die
I would not take the results of this study as “gospel.” However, if
you are 30 years old and you score 3, it provides a perspective on the
connection between mobility and health, and may encourage you to get
back in shape. Even if you've been exercising like I have for five
decades, it can still be a challenge.
The test is a simple measure of fitness at the most basic level,
testing not only strength but also flexibility, balance and
coordination. All of these are essential for day-to-day living and
maintaining your independence as you age. Unfortunately, despite a
growing body of research clearly demonstrating exercise deficiency
threatens your overall health and mental well-being, only 15 percent of
adults engage in vigorous physical activity three times a week for 20
minutes.21
Balanced Movement Reduces Injury
To read more about how sitting affects your biomechanics, movement
and using soft-tissue work to down-regulate your body into recovery
mode, see “Improving Your Health by Ditching Desks and Chairs.”
The article also contains a 30-minute interview with Kelly Starrett,
who has a Ph.D. in physical therapy and has focused his career on
fitness and mobility.
I highly recommend Starrett’s book, "Deskbound: Standing Up to a Sitting World."
I believe most people can benefit from his wisdom and strategies to
help address movement challenges. If you have a desk job, this book is a
veritable gold mine of helpful guidance. Starrett is one of the leaders
in the CrossFit movement and stresses the importance of proper body
mechanics, both in and outside the gym. He also has a YouTube channel
called MobilityWOD, which stands for Workout of the Day.
The interventions he suggests are not only powerful, they're also
inexpensive — in most cases free. When you consider the well-documented
benefits of movement over sitting, implementing these strategies is
really one of the best types of health insurance you can get.
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