Watching hours of TV daily could shorten your life

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Watching hours of TV daily could shorten your lifeBuzz

up!SendSharePrintMon Jan 11, 8:17 pm ETSYDNEY (Reuters) – Couch potatoes,

beware. Sitting in front of the television for hours daily could shorten your

life, according to an Australian study.Researchers from the Baker IDI Heart and

Diabetes Institute in the state of Victoria tracked the lifestyle habitsof

8,800 adults and found that each hour spent in front of the TV daily increased

the risk of dying earlier from cardiovascular disease.The study, published in

" Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, " found every hour in

front of the TV was associated with an 11 percent increased risk of death from

all causes, a 9 percent higher risk of cancer death, and an 18 percent increased

risk of cardiovascular disease (CVD) related death. " Compared with people who

watched less than two hours of television daily, those who watched more than

four hours a day had a 46 percent higher risk

of death from all causes and an 80 percent increased risk for CVD-related

death, " the researchers said in a statement.The researchers said this

association held regardless of other independent and common cardiovascular

disease risk factors, including smoking, high blood pressure, high blood

cholesterol, unhealthy diet, excessivewaist circumference, and leisure-time

exercises.Researcher David Dunstan said the study focused specifically on

television watching but the findings suggest that any prolonged sedentary

behavior, such as sitting at a desk or in front of a computer, may pose a health

risk. " The human body was designed to move, not sit for extended periods of

time, " said Dunstan, head of the institute's physical activity laboratory in the

division of metabolism and obesity. " Technological, social, and economic changes

mean that people don't move their muscles as much as they used to - consequently

the levels of energy expenditure as people go

about their lives continue to shrink. " For many people, on a daily basis they

simply shift from one chair to another -- from the chair in the car to the chair

in the office to the chair in front of the television. " Dunstan said the findings

applied not only to individuals who were overweight and obese, but also those of

a healthy weight. " Even if someone has a healthy body weight, sitting for long

periods of time still has an unhealthy influence on their blood sugar and blood

fats, " he said. " In addition to doing regular exercise, avoid sitting for

prolonged periods and keep in mind to 'move more, more often'. Too much sitting

is bad for health. " The researchers interviewed 3,846 men and 4,954 women aged 25

and older who underwent oral glucose-tolerance tests and provided blood samples

so researchers could measure biomarkers such as cholesterol and blood sugar

levels.Participants were enrolled from 1999 and followed through 2006 and

reported their

television-viewing habits.(Reporting by Belinda Goldsmith, Editing by Miral

Fahmy)

Muhammad Ahmad Al-Masry

 

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