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Sedentary Work: An Overlooked Factor In Bad Heart Health

Evidence-based Reviewed Article

An image of a woman massaging her nape with her eyes closedSpending most of the day sitting at work doesn’t seem like the worst thing in the world – there certainly are worse jobs. However, research has associated such sedentary work with increased rates of cardiovascular conditions and other health risks in general. Despite this, quitting your job is not exactly always a viable solution. That's why we'll look at the research behind this connection and some practical ways to prevent these health risks.

What Constitutes Sedentary Work?

Sedentary work is any work where you have to spend a long time in a seated, reclined, or lying-down posture. In this type of work, the energy expenditure is less than 1.5 metabolic equivalents of task (METs), which is the ratio of the working metabolic rate to the resting metabolic rate.1sedentary work

Over the years, sedentary work has increased in the United States. Today, more than 80% of the jobs in the United States involve mostly sedentary activities,2 which is not all that surprising considering the advancements in technology and the ease of working with computers.

The MET component in assessing sedentary behavior is very important, as it addresses a common misconception that a sedentary lifestyle is associated with being lazy or inactive. Unlike physical activity, which revolves around how many minutes you spend a week on aerobic activity, the term sedentary heavily relies on the postural component.

This means you can work hard at work and even meet the recommended minute requirement for physical activity a week, but you still have a sedentary lifestyle because you spend several hours of the day glued to your seat. While the work you do on your computer or desk requires much attention, it doesn’t significantly improve your metabolic working rate. This is what the MET clearly shows. For instance, a brisk walk uses around 4 METs an hour, while reading in the same period uses 1.3 METs.

What Is the Relationship Between Sedentary Work and Cardiovascular Conditions?

According to a recent study that examined about 482,000 people over 13 years, prolonged sitting in the workplace was associated with a 34% increase in the risk of cardiovascular disease compared to those who did not sit or alternated sitting and non-sitting.3 This study is also not the first to find a correlation between the time spent sitting and cardiovascular conditions.

Other older studies have also examined and found an association between sedentary behavior and cardiovascular disease mortality. In fact, in some studies, the risk of dying from heart conditions among people who spent a long time sitting was as high as 54%.4

In simple terms, having sedentary work significantly increases the risk of poor heart health and cardiovascular conditions. This leads to the next logical question: why?

Why Is Sedentary Work Associated with Cardiovascular Conditions?

Several mechanisms have been proposed to be responsible for the association between sedentary work and cardiovascular conditions. One such mechanism is the reduction in the enzymatic activity of lipoprotein lipase.4 This enzyme is responsible for the breakdown of circulating triglycerides in the blood.

An image of an artery clogged with fatsTherefore, there is an increase in triglyceride levels in the blood, accompanied by a reduction in high-density lipoprotein (HDL), dubbed the good cholesterol. This is connected to hardening of the artery walls, causing a subsequent increase in the risk of cardiovascular conditions like stroke and heart attack.

Furthermore, sedentary work and behavior can promote oxidative stress and inflammation in the body.5 This can have significant consequences on the heart, as the blood pressure may increase, causing hypertension, as well as an increased risk of cardiac arrhythmia and atherosclerosis.

Also, it is generally accepted that a sedentary lifestyle is associated with fewer calories burnt daily. This then increases the risk of obesity, which is strongly associated with increasing triglyceride levels and declining cardiovascular health.

Other Health Risks of Sedentary Work

Aside from the decline in cardiovascular health, sedentary work is also linked to other health conditions. Studies show that there is a 16% increase in mortality from all causes among individuals who spent a lot of time sitting compared to those who didn’t. Some of the other health risks of sedentary work are:

Diabetes

The higher the sedentary time of an individual, the higher the risk of having type 2 diabetes. This is because of the altered metabolism of sugars, causing an increase in their levels in the blood. Interestingly, studies have found that the level of physical activity does not influence the impact of increased sedentary time on the risk for diabetes.5 In other words, even in physically active individuals, increasing sedentary time still increases the risk for diabetes.

Obesity

The relationship here is straightforward. Sedentary work generally means you burn fewer calories, causing the body to store extra energy as fat. This can then have other health implications.

Cancer

There are links between prolonged sitting (as observed in sedentary work) and colorectal, endometrial, breast, ovarian, and prostate cancers. While all the mechanisms behind this relationship have not been fully examined, science believes that the ability of sedentary behavior to cause metabolic and hormonal dysfunctions can increase the risk of cancer.

Adrenal Fatigue

Adrenal Fatigue is a condition where the body is unable to keep up with long-term stress, resulting in various nonspecific symptoms such as tiredness, sleep disturbances, anxiousness, and weight gain. Adrenal fatigue results from chronic stress to the body, which causes dysregulation in one of the circuits of the NeuroEndoMetabolic (NEM) system of the body. The NEM, consisting of six circuits of several organs, helps reduce stress in the body.

When an individual has sedentary work, there is a high risk of pancreas inflammation (pancreatitis). Since the pancreas is a key part of the bioenergetics circuit of the NEM system, pancreatitis can lead to a dysregulation of this circuit. Several metabolic disorders accompany this dysregulation. Eventually, adrenal fatigue may result.

How to Prevent the Health Risks of a Sedentary Work

The rather tricky part about preventing all of the health risks associated with sedentary work is that quitting the job is never really a realistic solution. Still, certain measures can help prevent these health risks. They are as follows.

Increased Physical Activity

According to the American Heart Association, the standard for physical activity is at least 150 minutes weekly of moderate-intensity aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous activity (or a combination of both), ideally spread throughout the week. However, for individuals with sedentary work, an extra 15 to 30 minutes of physical activity daily can mitigate the increased health risks.

The increased time for physical activity for people with sedentary behavior means they will have to double the recommended time of moderate physical activity. This – also – may not be too realistic for some. In such cases, a high-intensity interval training (HIIT) schedule may be of great benefit. This kind of exercise allows you to work out less while achieving roughly the same goals as a full exercise.

Making Workstations More Activity-Permissive

An image of a working woman while using an exercise ballWhile quitting your job may not always make sense, there is a lot of sense in making your work activities more activity-permissive. Studies show that alternating between sitting and not sitting at work provides close to the same benefits as not sitting at all.3 This shows that even incorporating a little movement in your sedentary work can have significant benefits.

Therefore, ensure you don’t spend too long sitting without taking a shot walk, or even just standing while working if you can. Also, you can maximize your physical activity by taking advantage of breaks and opportunities you have to exert yourself physically. For instance, instead of taking the elevator, use the stairs. Some offices allow you to incorporate standing desks or use an exercise ball instead of a chair.

Check Your Diet

While this may seem out of place, your diet plays a huge role in the progression of many health conditions. This is even more applicable when you have sedentary work, as your risk for heart and other health conditions is much higher. So, as much as you can, avoid sugary and ultra-processed foods. Also, you can have water or chopped vegetables instead of binge-eating snacks at work.

Conclusion

A sedentary work environment involves extended periods of sitting or assuming a reclined posture. Technological advancements have caused a massive rise in sedentary activities at most jobs today. Unfortunately, these sedentary activities increase the risk of several heart conditions, like stroke, hypertension, heart attack, and arrhythmia. There are also risks for other health conditions like obesity, diabetes, cancer, and Adrenal Fatigue.

A simple solution exists, though, and it is simply increasing the time for physical activity by 15 to 30 minutes daily. Also, people with such sedentary lifestyles should pay close attention to their diet, cutting off processed foods and sugars where possible.

For more information about sedentary work and its relationship with cardiovascular and general health, do not hesistate to reach out to us at +1 (626) 571-1234. We can point you in the right direction about the right preventive measures and other tips relating to diet.

© Copyright 2024 Michael Lam, M.D. All Rights Reserved.
References

Tremblay, M. S., et al. "Sedentary Behavior Research Network (SBRN) - Terminology Consensus Project Process and Outcome." International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity, vol. 14, no. 1, 10 June 2017, p. 75. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/28599680/

Duffy, E. Y., et al. "Opportunities to Improve Cardiovascular Health in the New American Workplace." American Journal of Preventive Cardiology, vol. 5, 8 Dec. 2020, p. 100136. https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC8315405/

Gao, W., et al. "Occupational Sitting Time, Leisure Physical Activity, and All-Cause and Cardiovascular Disease Mortality." JAMA Network Open, vol. 7, no. 1, 2024, e2350680. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/38241049/.

Lavie, Carl J., et al. "Sedentary Behavior, Exercise, and Cardiovascular Health." Circulation Research, vol. 124, no. 5, 2019, pp. 799-815. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/30817262/.

Park, J. H., et al. "Sedentary Lifestyle: Overview of Updated Evidence of Potential Health Risks." Korean Journal of Family Medicine, vol. 41, no. 6, Nov. 2020, pp. 365-373. https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33242381/.

Dr. Lam’s Key Question

Yes, there is a similarity between the health risks of people who do not sit at work at all and those who alternate sitting and non-sitting. This suggests that even in jobs that predominantly require sedentary activities, introducing physical activity can have health benefits.

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