Prepare yourself for some concerning news. Are you comfortably seated? Well, you might want to stand for this …
A group of international researchers recently conducted a comprehensive meta-study that ranks our daily movements and positions according to their benefits for heart health.
To put it simply, almost any activity is better for your heart than sitting all day. Yes, even going to bed early.
This study doesn’t recommend swapping your office chair for a cozy recliner, but it does support the idea that making small changes in our activity levels can greatly improve our cardiovascular health. Interestingly, establishing a healthy sleep routine is slightly more beneficial than staying seated all night to binge-watch Netflix’s latest crime documentary.
“The key finding from our research is that while small changes in movement can positively impact heart health, the intensity of the movement matters,” stated Jo Blodgett, an epidemiologist at University College London and the lead author of the study. “The most beneficial change we observed was substituting sitting with moderate to vigorous activity – such as running, brisk walking, or climbing stairs – essentially any activity that elevates your heart rate and forces you to breathe faster, even for a short period of time.”
Cardiovascular diseases currently claim nearly 18 million lives each year in the form of heart attacks, strokes, and other heart-related conditions. While genetics may predispose some individuals to these conditions, unhealthy modern lifestyles across the globe exacerbate the situation with factors like physical inactivity, poor diet, tobacco use, and alcohol consumption.
According to various health statistics, making healthy dietary choices, quitting tobacco, and reducing alcohol consumption are a step in the right direction. However, the vast majority of people spend most of their day sitting, particularly due to long commutes to office jobs.
After analyzing data from six studies involving over 15,000 participants, researchers found that prolonged sitting has the worst impact on cardiovascular health, affecting various measures of heart health such as body mass index (BMI), cholesterol, and glycated hemoglobin (HbA1c), a marker for type 2 diabetes.
But the good news is that significant improvements can be achieved with small changes. For instance, a 54-year-old woman with a BMI of 26.5 can reduce her BMI by 2.4 percent by using a standing desk for just half an hour a day. Furthermore, incorporating regular brisk walks can reduce waist measurements and HbA1c level significantly.
Reallocating time spent on sleeping, standing, or sitting to light or moderately vigorous physical activities can have a profound impact on heart health. Additionally, while getting adequate sleep has its own benefits, sleep was found to have an appreciable positive effect on “good” cholesterol when replacing sitting.
While in an ideal world we would all spend our days engaging in physically active pursuits and enjoy ample sleep, even small changes like standing instead of sitting, taking the stairs, and going to bed a bit earlier can contribute to improved heart health.
This study was recently featured in the European Heart Journal.
