Sitting is New Smoking!

Sitting is new smoking!

Many researchers have come to an conclusion, after various studies, that sitting for extended period of time leads to bad cardiovascular changes which are comparable to those with chronic smokers. Living a sedentary lifestyle can be dangerous to health.

If you stand or move around during the day, chances of cardiovascular diseases are less than if you sit at a desk. Living sedentary lifestyle means you have higher chance of being overweight ,developing type 2 diabetes ,heart disease and even anxiety and depression.

What are the side effects of sitting?

·         Muscles of the legs become weak and some of them also become tight. So the chances of injury and falls are more compared to active population.

·         Moving your muscles help you to digest food. But when you're sitting for longer times, digestive system slows down. This increases chances of bloating and flatulence.

·         Due to excessive sitting, metabolic rate goes down adding to more and more fat deposits and ultimately weight gain.

·         As back and hip muscles start getting weaker, posture starts deteriorating, leading chronic lower back aches.

·         People who tend to sit for longer hours, miss the positive impact of activities and ultimately start getting depressed.

·         Sitting for long periods has been linked to heart diseases.

·         Possibility of diabetes and insulin resistance is very high when sitting hours are extensive.

·         Sitting causes blood to be pulled towards leg due to gravity and that can lead to varicose veins. They are generally not dangerous, but if not treated on time can lead to deep vein thrombosis.

How can we save our health from dangers of sitting?

Best way is to start incorporating some activity in routine life. If you cannot make time for regular exercises at least make sure that you are active throughout the day. Of course, nothing can replace benefits of routine regular exercises.

Being active at office:

ü  Walk or cycle to office if possible.

ü  Park car or two wheeler a few meters away from office.

ü  Use stairs instead of elevators.

ü  Take lunch break away from your desk.

ü  Take a stroll after lunch if possible.

ü  Organize walking meetings.

ü  Perform micro breaks every 30 minutes for 5 seconds.

ü  Set timer on workstation, to remind you to get up and move.

ü  If possible stand up and read mails.

Being active at home:

ü  Start with regular 10 minutes workout.

ü  Don't let weather stop you, start with simple mat exercises at home.

ü  Set a timer on television, to remind you to get up and move.

ü  Walk around when you're on phone.

ü  If possible, instead of reading get audio-books and go out for walks.

ü  Try to do household chores by yourself.