For those who prefer to just sit around. A new study now finds that swapping a half hour of sitting around with physical activity of any intensity or duration cut the risk of early death by as much as 35 percent in older adults. Notably, the findings stress on the importance of movement, regardless of its intensity or amount of time spent moving, for a healthier life.
The study was published online in the American Journal of Epidemiology. The study found that about one in four adults spends more than eight hours a day sitting. The study also found that people who sat for less than 30 minutes at a time had the lowest risk of early death, suggesting that taking movement breaks every half-hour could lower your risk of death.
The study further found that replacing just 30 minutes of sitting with low-intensity physical activity would lower the risk of early death by 17 percent. Swapping the same amount of sitting for moderate to vigorous activity would be twice as effective, cutting the risk of early death by 35 percent. The researchers also found that short bursts of activity of just a minute or two provided a health benefit.
