Previous studies have tied too much time spent sedentary to a variety of health problems, including heart disease, blood clots, a large waistline, higher blood sugar and insulin, generally poor physical functioning, and even early death.
The findings of 70,000 cases of cancer published on June 16 in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute, reveals both good news and bad news.
The good news? Being sedentary did not appear to be linked to every kind of cancer. Scientists found no relationship between sitting and breast, ovarian, testicular or prostate cancers, or cancers of the stomach, esophagus and kidneys, or non-Hodgkin lymphoma.
The bad news was that there did seem to be a consistent relationship between hours spent sitting and an increased risk for colon and endometrial (uterine) cancers.
People who spent the most time sitting and watching TV during the day had a 54 percent increased risk of getting colon cancer and 66 percent increased risk of endometrial cancer compared to those who logged the least number of hours in a chair. Moreover, every two-hour increase in sitting time was linked to an 8 percent increased risk of colon cancer and a 10 percent increased risk of endometrial cancer.
So, Cutting down on TV viewing and sedentary time is just as important as becoming more active. For those whose jobs require them to sit at a desk most of the day, it is recommended breaking up the time spent sitting by incorporating short bouts of light activity into the daily routine.
