Sitting is a New Cancer

Recently, Apple Chief Executive Tim Cook made a bold statement by saying “Sitting is a new cancer” when he was bragging the new feature in the Apple Watch that reminds user to stand up more often. Is sitting really the new cancer? Or will sitting cause the cancer? I believe the core message Mr. Cook wants to deliver is the health risk of an over-sedentary lifestyle.

Studies have been conducted to determine the relationship between sedentary behavior and various health problems. For example, a 2012 study published in Diabetologia have found sedentary time is associated with an increased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality. Based on a meta-analysis of 18 studies involving almost 800,000 people, researchers suggested that people who spent the most time sitting or lying down while awake had a 112% increase in the risk of diabetes; a 147% increase in “cardiovascular events” – including heart attacks – and a 90% increase in death due to those events.

Another study in the American Journal of Epidemiology also suggests a positive association between time spent sitting and all-cause death rates, as demonstrated by the biomarkers such as triglycerides, high density lipoprotein, cholesterol, fasting plasma glucose, resting blood pressure, and leptin which are mostly elevated by prolonged time spent sitting and are indicator of obesity and cardiovascular and other chronic diseases. People may think sitting for long periods of time is OK as long as they are also engaged in some form of physical activity. Evidence shows time spent sitting was independently related to health risks and mortality, regardless of physical activity level.

If you have an office job requiring sitting in front of computer all day, you should try to get up more often. Set a timer to beep at regular intervals to remind you to stand up and move. Lunch time workout could be another good option to boost your afternoon productivity. This link provides helpful tips to those who have to sit at a computer all day.

References

Wilmot EG, Edwardson CL, Achana FA, et al. Sedentary time in adults and the association with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and death: systematic review and meta-analysis. Diabetologia. 2012; 55: 2895-905.

Patel AV, Bernstein L, Deka A, et al. Leisure time spent sitting in relation to total mortality in a prospective cohort of u.s. adults. Am J Epidemiol. 2010;172(4):419–9.