Sitting for long periods of time raises your risk of death, research shows

BOSTON - Many workers spend hours sitting at a desk or behind the wheel of a car, but a new study finds this sedentary behavior could be deadly. 

Researchers in Taiwan studied nearly half a million people over nearly 13 years and found that those who predominantly sat at work were 34-percent more likely to die from cardiovascular disease and 16-percent more likely to die from all causes than those who did not primarily stay seated on the job. 

And they report that those who mostly sit at work would need to engage in 15 to 30 minutes of physical activity a day to offset that increased risk of death.

In other words, you should avoid sitting for long periods at work and get up and move around more often or if that's not possible increase your level of physical activity outside of the workplace. 

In:
• Health

Mallika Marshall, MD

Mallika Marshall, MD is an Emmy-award-winning journalist and physician who has served as the HealthWatch Reporter for CBS Boston/WBZ-TV for over 20 years. A practicing physician Board Certified in both Internal Medicine and Pediatrics, Dr. Marshall serves on staff at Harvard Medical School and practices at Massachusetts General Hospital at the MGH Chelsea Urgent Care and the MGH Revere Health Center, where she is currently working on the frontlines caring for patients with COVID-19. She is also a host and contributing editor for Harvard Health Publications (HHP), the publishing division of Harvard Medical School.

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