Sedentary lifestyle common in Cubicle Land, study shows

Sedentary Workers At Risk For Obesity

Sedentary work by U.S. workers in the past 50 years has contributed to a rise in obesity rates according to a study by the journal PLOS One.

About half of the jobs half a century ago required moderate physical activity, the study showed. But the number has since gone down to less than 20 percent. This lack of physical activity in the workplace, along with poor diet and a sedentary lifestyle have become a deadly triumvirate for obesity-related diseases. Genetics may also contribute to the condition.

In terms of calories, the difference is about 120 to 140 unburned calories because of sedentary work. The decline in energy spent at work "accounts for a significant portion of the increase in mean U.S. body weight for women and men over the last five decades," the study said.

The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) reports that one in three Americans or 72 million are considered obese. The obesity rate has accelerated twice since 1980. CDC data as well as numerous studies also showed that obesity raises the risk of heart problems, cancer and type 2 diabetes.

For years, health experts have focused more on promoting exercise and physical activity to combat the obesity epidemic. The new report shows another important but less highlighted factor - a sedentary American workplace.

Beyond healthy eating habits and exercise during leisure time, physical activity at work may be having as much as an impact because people spend the bulk of their waking hours seated at their cushy office chairs.

The sedentary nature of today's workplace, where one in five workers has moderate physical activity, is in sharp contrast to the factories and farms of half a century ago when one in two Americans toiled for a living.

Posted by George Daniels on Friday May 27 2011, 5:26 AM EST. Ref: Bloomberg. All trademarks acknowledged. Filed under Featured News, Health. Comments and Trackbacks closed. Follow responses: RSS 2.0