Sedentary Behavior - How Sitting Is Killing Us

A library on campus recently advertised their new standing-height workstations with a catchy sign proclaiming that “sitting is the new sugar.”  The word is out: sitting is bad for us; worse, even, than the sugars and fats we have long vilified, and more harmful than cigarettes.  Recent studies have linked prolonged sedentary time with obesity, diabetes, cardiovascular disease, cancer, back pain, and psychological distress. Simply put, sitting is killing us.  Sedentary behavior researcher Travis Saunders cautions that, “all things being equal (body weight, physical activity levels, smoking, alcohol intake, age, and sex) the person who sits more is at a higher risk of death than the person who sits less”.