If you’re working a desk job, chances are high that you sit all day – but can sitting all day cause heart problems? Find out how it affects your health.
According to various studies, there is a correlation between the amount of time you spend sitting and a higher risk of cardiovascular disease. Moreover, it is also associated with metabolic syndrome, obesity, diabetes, high cholesterol, hypertension, and more. Whether you’re sitting at work, at home, or both, here is an overview of the health effects of sitting all day.
Health Benefits of Not Sitting
Regular exercise is good for your health, but you also need to keep in mind what you’re doing when you’re not exercising. According to a July 2015 Australian study, more time sitting correlates with higher BMIs, waist circumference, glucose levels, triglyceride counts, and lower HDL cholesterol.
In contrast, people who spend more time standing have more favorable measurements in all these areas. The authors recommend that individuals spend more time standing (or walking) than sitting to greatly reduce the effects of sitting all day long.
Furthermore, multiple studies demonstrate a correlation between prolonged sitting and a higher cardiovascular risk. These studies also found that higher risk is present even if people exercise regularly. In other words, it doesn’t matter if you exercise consistently – you also need to avoid sitting down for long periods of time.
Negative Effects of Sitting
While sitting or lying down can help with relaxation, which benefits the cardiovascular system, it also makes the heart work less. By causing a reduced baseline level of cardiovascular work, sitting can lead to relative cardiac deconditioning. In contrast, if you maximize standing over sitting, you improve your cardiovascular and muscular tone.
However, it’s important to keep in mind that these associations do not demonstrate a definite causal relationship. These studies also rely on self-reported information rather than objective types of data gathering. As a result, more studies are necessary to reach a firm conclusion on the matter.
Still, there are studies aiming to answer this question by using objective data to assess the relationship between sitting and heart health. The results of these studies should be available within a few years, showing us how cardiovascular health can be improved through more standing and less sitting.
The Outlook
Even though more research is necessary, you won’t lose anything if you decide to spend more time standing than sitting. You also don’t have to be simply standing; try walking around to get some exercise throughout your day.
In addition to moving about, you can give your heart health a boost by taking supplements like L-arginine Plus. Its ingredients effectively promote circulation, blood pressure health, cholesterol health, and more. Give your heart the support it deserves by limiting your time spent sitting down and instead, move about and take L-arginine Plus.