Experts
call for further research into the dangers of a sedentary lifestyle after a
survey carried out by the Swedish National Institute for Public Health
(Folkhälsoinstitutet) revealed that 30 percent of Swedes sit for eight hours a
day. “It is important that more people understand the importance of getting up
from a sedentary job or the TV couch. Just to get up and stretch your legs,”
said Johan Faskunger of the institute in a statement.
The
survey showed that almost three in ten adult Swedes, some 29 percent, stay
seated for a period of two hours or more at least once a day. The study also showed that one in three adult
Swedes sit down for eight hours or more during a normal work day. Almost four
in ten young Swedes between the ages of 15 and 29, some 38 percent, stay seated
for eight hours or more. The sedentary
lifestyle seems to be mostly widespread among young Swedish women of which four
in ten spend a whole day or more in front of a computer or TV screen or behind
the wheel of a car. The corresponding figure among the young males was 36
percent.
A
report published by the institute, called Sitting still and ill health
(Stillasittande och ohälsa), shows that those with such a lifestyle are at risk
of premature death as well as heart disease, even if they take regular physical
activity. “It seems like the sitting down in itself is a risk factor, “
Faskunger said.
Pia
Lindeskog, head of the department of lifestyle and living environment at the
National Institute for Public Health, called for a more comprehensive study
into the link between sitting down for long periods of time and ill health as
well as a scientific gradation of methods to counteract a sedentary lifestyle. 1,000
Swedes from age 15 and up took part in the survey, which was carried out by
research company Sifo. Participants were asked how common it is that they sit
down for periods of two hours or more during a normal day.
The
survey and the report were presented on Tuesday as part of a campaign called A
Healthier Sweden (Ett friskare Sverige) and running between the 15th and 21st
of October, acknowledging the importance of eating habits and physical
activity.
The Local Sweden
No comments:
Post a Comment