The Sitting Sickness

If you've heard that life is movement, it's true.  If you've heard that just sitting around can kill you, it's also true.  Physical inactivity is the fourth leading cause of death worldwide![1] You may have heard the media reporting recently on several studies showing that prolonged sitting significantly increases the risk for death, including death from heart disease and cancer, but I'm not sure this news has really hit home yet[2],[3],[4].  

Most people know that exercise is critical for health and preventing disease, but the issue of physical activity and inactivity is much bigger than exercise.  Regardless of the amount of exercise one performs, the level of aerobic fitness one exhibits, or whether a person is thin or overweight, stillness still kills[5].  Apparent health and leading an otherwise healthy lifestyle does not compensate for extended periods of sitting around, and we Americans do a great deal of sitting around.[6],[7],[8].  We've even built over 4 million miles of roads so we can sit still while we go places!  In fact, the infrastructures and cultures of most developed nations seem to be perfectly designed for physical inactivity.