Spending too much time sitting at your desk could lead to multiple health risks, according to a new University of Sydney study.
“It is almost as if the chair is out to kill us,” Chauncey Crandall, MD, a cardiologist at the Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center, told NewsMax Health.
The average American sits for more than half of their waking day, a position that puts pressure on parts of the body that are not meant to take.
In turn, sitting leads to poor circulation, diabetes, heart disease and many other ailments.
“Sitting is the new smoking,” Dr. Anup Kanodia of Ohio State University’s Wexner Medical Center said.
Researchers say the best thing to do is stay active, like walking more often during the day or getting up every 30 minutes for a good stretch or to fetch a glass of water.
“Our results suggest the time people spend sitting at home, work and in traffic should be reduced by standing or walking more,” study author Dr. Hidde van der Ploeg, of the University of Sydney’s School of Public Health, said in a statement.
“Try to find a healthy balance between sitting, standing and walking or other physical activities,” he said.
So next time you find yourself sitting for a prolonged amount of time; get up and get your blood circulating throughout your body…and repeat.