Do you know that sitting for too long can be harmful?
Did you know that the risk of anxiety and depression is higher in people that sit more?
We all love to take some rest, and why not? Sitting, after hours of physical activities like exercise, playing and walking helps to recover lost muscles and even reduces stress. But nowadays, due to our sedentary lifestyle, we are spending way too much hours sitting in one place than ever before; something our body isn’t built to do. In fact, the human body is evolved to move.
Yes, we are evolved to move, and we can see its proof in how our body is structured. It consists of over 360 joints and around 700 skeletal muscles that allow smooth flexible movement. Its unique construction also gives us the ability to stand as straight as bamboo against the force of gravity. Our blood circulation depends on our physical movement. Even our nerve cells benefit from such action. And our skin is as elastic as a rubber band to mold according to the body’s motion. All these clearly states that we are created to move, but the what happens when we decide not to move it?
Let’s start with the spine; which compose of bones and a cartilage disc that sits between them, which is held together by joints, muscles and ligaments. And when we sit with slumped shoulders and curved back, this position puts uneven pressure on our spine, leading to wear and tear of spinal discs i.e. exhaust certain ligaments and joints, and puts a strain on muscles that stretches and supports your back’s curved position. Not only that, but this curved sitting position can also shrink your chest cavity, leaving less room for your lungs to expand while breathing. This reduces the level of oxygen that goes into your lungs and filters into blood. Apart from this, your bones are surrounded by soft tissues made of nerves and muscles. Sitting for a longer period can put tremendous pressure on these delicate tissues and reduces blood flow, which can cause damage to them, leading to swelling and numbness. Long sitting streaks also temporarily deactivate special enzymes called “Lipoprotein Lipase” located in the walls of blood capillaries, responsible for breaking down fats in the blood. And thus, sitting for too long can lead to the accumulation of fats as well. And it’s just not your body that gets harmed by sitting, but it impacts your brain as well.
In general, we tend to sit for studying to focus. But lengthy periods of sitting can actually do the opposite as it reduces blood flow and the level of oxygen entering your bloodstream through your lungs. And as our brain needs both of these things to stay alert, our concentration level comes down as our brain activity slows down.
Apart from all these short-term harms, recent studies have shown that long sitting hours can lead to some types of cancers and heart diseases. And can also play a role in causing diabetes, liver, and kidney problems. But unfortunately, for this great problem, we have a simple solution. Yes, always try to sit with a straight spine. Make sure to move around as much as you can, and getting up every half hour. And the best thing is to stay away from your cell phones for some time. Also, play outdoors with your friends.
