Official News page 5

REAL LIFE NEWS: SITTING DOWN CAN KILL YOU

by Hazed

It's not just playing computer games that can do terrible things to your body. Now it turns out that sitting down for too long could be deadly. Swedish scientists have warned that too much sitting on your bum can provoke cancer, diabetes, heart disease and obesity.

Well, duh, you are probably thinking - lazy people are more likely to get those diseases than those who engage in exercise. But that's not what the study is all about. The problem is not just whether you get any exercise or not, but how long you spend immobile. Even those that exercise regularly are asking for trouble if they spend the rest of the time sitting behind a desk or lying on the sofa.

Researchers from the Karolinska Institute and the Swedish School of Sport and Health said, "...long periods sitting down carries an extra risk that cannot be dealt with by taking exercise."

The study compared "two groups of sedentary office workers, one of whom had regular breaks to move around while the other remained sitting for up to eight hours a day. The group that had breaks had better blood lipid levels and blood glucose and less obesity."

The solution, according to Dr Alin Ekblom-Bak, who lead the study, is to get up off your arse and move about a bit. "It is important to have a five minute break from desk work every 45 minutes. Don't email colleagues - walk across the office to give them the message. Take a coffee break or put the printer in the next room."

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