Physical activity is an essential part of maintaining a healthy lifestyle. However, approximately 31% of the global population fails to meet minimum physical activity requirements. Americans spend an average of 7.7 hours a day sitting, which can increase the risk of developing many health conditions, including back pain, type 2 diabetes, heart disease, and some types of cancer.
Staying physically active and taking frequent breaks from sitting reduces these risks. This article covers the side effects of sitting down too long and offers tips for preventing the consequences of a sedentary lifestyle.
How Many Hours of Sitting Is Unhealthy?
According to the Start Standing organization, sitting too long is considered just as harmful for the body as smoking. While there is not an exact amount of sitting to be considered unhealthy, the general consensus is that the more you sit, the worse it is for you. This is especially true if your sitting is uninterrupted, meaning you do not take any breaks.
What Happens to the Body After Sitting Down for Too Long?
Sitting down for too long can have several negative side effects on your body. Without movement, your muscles become tight, your joints become stiff, and your metabolism and circulation slow down. These changes can result in a variety of different conditions that can continue to get worse the more you sit.
Weak Legs and Glutes
Increased sitting makes your leg muscles inactive. Over time, this causes muscles to become weak and fatigue quickly with physical activity. Increased inactivity with sitting too long also increases the risk of sarcopenia, or loss of muscle. Without proper strength in your legs and glutes, everyday activities like standing up from a chair, walking, and going up and down stairs can become difficult.
Tight Hips and Back Pain
Lack of movement will cause your muscles to become tight. This is especially true for the hip flexors when you sit in a chair with your legs bent at 90 degrees. Tight hips can limit your mobility and increase strain on your lower back.
Sitting too long also increases the pressure between the discs in the lumbar spine of the lower back. This can cause pain and increase the risk of bulging and herniated discs, which can lead to further pain and complications like sciatica.
Stiff Shoulders and Neck
Tightness and stiffness in the neck and shoulders are also common symptoms of prolonged sitting. Staying in the same position for too long, especially with poor posture, can strain the upper body. This leads to pain and discomfort and can increase your risk of certain conditions that affect the neck and shoulders, like a pinched nerve or shoulder impingement.
A slouched posture can also limit the movement of the diaphragm, making it harder to get air in and out of your lungs. Over time, this can contribute to restrictive airway disease.
Slower Metabolism
Lack of movement and physical activity causes your metabolism to slow down. This makes your body less efficient at breaking down food for energy and more likely to store fat. Too much time sitting is one of the biggest risk factors for obesity.
Changes to Blood Flow
Because your muscles are not active during sitting, blood flow to your legs is reduced. This can impair the ability of your veins and lymphatic system to function properly, causing fluid to build up, which leads to swelling in the legs and poor circulation.
Mental Impact
Physical inactivity slows down your entire body. This can lead to cognitive changes, which can impact your memory and ability to think clearly. A sedentary lifestyle also increases the risk of depression and other mood disorders.
Musculoskeletal Disorders
Sitting too long can increase the risk of many musculoskeletal disorders. Lack of movement can make joints stiff and muscles weak, which can increase the risk of developing osteoarthritis. Osteoporosis is also more likely to develop in sedentary individuals as bone weakens and becomes brittle without exercise and standing activity. Sitting for too long also results in many muscle imbalances, which increase your risk of injuries with everyday activities.
Deep Vein Thrombosis (DVT)
Because sitting for too long impairs circulation, less oxygen is supplied to the blood vessels of the legs. This decrease in oxygen narrows the blood vessels, while lack of movement increases fibrinogen, a protein that causes blood to clot. These risk factors increase the likelihood of a blood clot developing in the legs, also known as deep vein thrombosis (DVT).
Heart Disease
Decreased blood flow can also have long-term consequences on circulation and can lead to atherosclerosis or stiffening of the arteries from plaque buildup. This can increase the risk of developing conditions like heart disease and heart attacks as blood flow to the heart is restricted.
Hypertension
Stiffening of the arteries from poor circulation that occurs with sitting too long can also lead to hypertension. Blood is less able to flow through stiffened arteries, which causes blood pressure to increase through the constricted arteries. This leads to hypertension, or high blood pressure.
Diabetes Risk
Increased time sitting is linked to negative changes to metabolism, primarily increased blood sugar. Because muscles are inactive, they do not transport blood sugar out of the blood to use as energy. Excess blood sugar stays in the bloodstream and causes blood sugar levels to remain elevated. Over time, this leads to diabetes and many other complications of this disease.
Cancer Risk
Lack of physical activity raises levels of inflammation throughout the body, which increases the risk of cancer. Increased blood sugar also changes levels of sex hormones that can increase the risk of hormone-related cancers like breast and endometrial cancers.
What to Do About the Effects of Sitting Down All Day
The side effects of sitting down all day can increase your risk of many conditions. If you sit for extended periods, make sure that you follow up with your primary care provider regularly to monitor your health.
Regular check-ups with your primary care provider can give you the opportunity to address any issues or conditions before they get worse and help provide solutions to improve your health and decrease your sitting time. If not treated properly, conditions like diabetes, hypertension, heart disease, and circulation issues can get worse and lead to serious complications.
How to Prevent the Consequences of Sitting Down
Taking frequent breaks can help prevent the side effects of sitting down all day. Activity breaks do not have to be long or intense to combat the side effects of sitting too long.
Studies suggest that 1.5-5 minutes of light to moderate activity between every 20-30 minutes of sitting can improve glucose metabolism. This can help keep your blood sugar under better control, especially if you have diabetes.
Regular activity breaks can also help improve blood flow to the legs, which can help reduce swelling, joint stiffness, and muscle tightness. It is important to note that breaks from sitting should incorporate some sort of physical activity instead of just standing since standing alone does not have the same beneficial effects on your health. One of the best ways to take an activity break is through walking.
Wearing elastic compression stockings can also help prevent some side effects of prolonged sitting. Compression stockings apply pressure to the legs to help with circulation, which can reduce swelling and the risk of blood clots in the legs.
Easy Stretches to Counteract Sitting All Day
Sitting all day can tighten your muscles. To reduce strain, try these stretches for different parts of your body.
Chest and Shoulder Stretch
Stand in front of a doorway.
Lift both arms out to your sides while keeping a 90-degree bend in your elbows. Your elbows should be aligned with your shoulders. Rest your forearms along the door frame.
Lead your body forward into the doorway, feeling a stretch in the front of your chest and shoulders.
Hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
Repeat three times.
Neck Stretch
Start in a seated position.
Reach your right arm up and grab the top of your head with your right hand.
Pull your head to the side, bringing your right ear closer to your right shoulder
Hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
Repeat three times on each side.
Spinal Twist
Start in a seated position.
Rotate your body to the left, bringing your right hand to the outside of your left thigh. Extend your left arm behind you.
Hold for 10 seconds, then relax. Then perform the same to the right side.
Repeat 10 times on each side.
Back Extension
Start in a standing position.
Place your hands on your hips or lower back.
Slowly bend your back backward while pushing your hips forward. Squeeze your glutes.
Hold for 10 seconds, then relax.
Repeat 10 times.
Hip Stretch
Start in a standing position. You may want to hold onto a railing or wall for support.
Step one leg back behind your body into a lunging position.
Squeeze the glute of your back leg to push your hip forward. You should feel a stretch along the front of your hip.
Hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
Repeat three times on each side.
Hamstring Stretch
Stand in front of a step.
Lift one leg up and place your heel on top of the step with your toes pointing up.
Extend your knee and bend your body forward over your leg. You should feel a stretch along the back of your thigh and knee.
Hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
Repeat three times on each side.
Wrist Stretch
Extend one arm out in front of you with your fingers pointing up.
Grab your fingers with your opposite hand. Pull your fingers and wrist back. Keep your elbow straight.
Hold for 30 seconds, then relax.
Repeat three times on each side.
How to Correct Your Seated Posture
Sedentary activity not only refers to a lack of activity but also staying in the same posture for an extended period. It is important to maintain a good seated posture to decrease strain on your muscles and joints when sitting.
Good seated posture includes:
Head upright, aligning your neck over your spine
Shoulders pulled down and back
Neutral spine, not slouched or overly arched
Level hips
Legs uncrossed with feet flat on the floor
When to Contact a Healthcare Provider
Contact your healthcare provider if you experience increased swelling or pain in your legs or lower back every time you sit for an extended period. Sitting can bring about these issues or make them worse, and stretches and activity breaks may not be enough to address your symptoms, depending on the severity of your condition.
Seek immediate medical attention if you experience intense pain, cramping, swelling, or warmth in your calf. These are potential signs of a deep vein thrombosis or blood clot. Blood clots can travel to other parts of the body and can have very harmful or even fatal consequences.
Summary
Sitting down for too long and maintaining a sedentary lifestyle can have many harmful effects on the body. These include muscle tightness, joint stiffness, pain, circulation issues, slowed cognition and metabolism, and increased risk of hypertension, diabetes, blood clots, heart disease, musculoskeletal disorders, and cancer. To reduce the risk of sitting for too long, take regular breaks every 20-30 minutes to get up and walk or move your body.