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Perhaps you may have heard the phrase, “Sitting is the new smoking.” This is used to drive home research findings that daily prolonged sitting contributes to your risk of developing heart disease, similar to the risk of smoking.
Research has consistently shown that individuals who spend extensive hours seated each day, whether at work, during commutes, or at home in front of televisions and computers, are at a higher risk for various health issues. In addition to heart disease, these issues include obesity, diabetes, and other illnesses.
But now, new research has uncovered yet another risk associated with prolonged sitting: the risk of developing dementia. And to make matters worse, this risk is present for anyone who sits for much of the day, even if they exercise!
A study published online on September 12, 2023 in the prestigious Journal of the American Medical Association, examined data from nearly 50,000 older adults (average age 67, 55% women) who were free from dementia at the beginning of the study. Over a period of almost three years, participants wore wrist accelerometers to track their daily movement and sedentary behavior. Seven years later, researchers reviewed medical records to identify participants who had developed dementia.
The findings revealed that individuals who sat for an average of at least 10 hours a day during the tracking period had an 8% higher risk of developing dementia compared to those who sat for fewer hours. Those who sat for 12 hours or more per day were 63% more likely to develop dementia than those who sat for less than 10 hours daily. Notably, regular exercise did not alter these odds; people who sat for 10 hours or more daily faced similar dementia risks regardless of their exercise levels.
If you are wondering how an active adult with a job could sit for ten hours or more a day, it’s really not too hard to imagine. Just take into consideration a work commute twice daily by car or train, sitting for eight hours in front of a computer at work, then more sitting while relaxing in front of the television or sitting reading a book, and there you have it, as all that sitting adds up.
Many people with this type of activity pattern will try their best to take short breaks during the day by getting up and walking around but this does not seem to have any effect, as it’s the total time sitting that counts. It’s unclear, at least for now, how using a standing desk might lessen your risk, as the accelerometers used in the study couldn’t really tell the difference between someone who was standing still in front of a standing desk and someone who was sitting, so more research is needed here.
To lower the risk of dementia, it is important to find ways to reduce overall sitting time. If your job involves long hours at a desk or computer, seek opportunities to stay active throughout the day. This could include walking around the office while on phone calls, scheduling walking meetings, or picking up your lunch instead of having it delivered.
Monitoring how many hours you spend sitting is important. When you approach or exceed 10 hours of stationary time, make an effort to move more and reduce sedentary activities like prolonged Zoom meetings. Although this study is associational and cannot definitively prove that sitting causes cognitive decline, it suggests a link between prolonged sitting and reduced cerebral blood flow, which may affect brain health. Additionally, extended sitting periods, particularly in front of the TV, can lead to poor eating habits that could impact long-term brain health.
The encouraging aspect is that the negative effects of over-sitting can be countered by increasing physical activity. The key message is to "sit less, move more" to promote better overall health and potentially reduce your risk of dementia.
