Health endangered by watching TV

12 Jan 2010, 9:58 am   -   Source: AAP
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New Australian research suggests that an hour in front of the television each day increases the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 18 percent.

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New Australian research suggests that an hour in front of the television each day increases the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 18 percent.

An additional hour in front of the box each day increases the risk of dying from cardiovascular disease by 18 per cent, according to Australian research published in the Journal of the American Heart Association.

Each extra hour increases by 11 per cent the overall likelihood of dying from all causes, including cancer.

Inactivity bad for blood sugar and fats

"The human body was designed to move, not sit for extended periods of time," the study's lead author, David Dunstan, said.

"But technological, social, and economic changes mean that people don't move their muscles as much as they used to.

"For many people, on a daily basis they simply shift from one chair to another."

Prof Dunstan, from the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Melbourne, says sitting for long periods is bad for blood sugar and fats - even if you're healthy.

The link between television viewing and increased mortality holds true regardless of other risk factors such as smoking, poor diet, high cholesterol and obesity.

The average Australian watches three hours of television every day.

The researchers monitored the viewing habits of 8,800 adults over six years before publishing the alarming results.

They found someone who watches four hours of TV each day has an 80 per cent higher risk of death from heart disease compared to someone who watches less than two hours.

They're 46 per cent more likely to die from all causes.

‘More more often’

Prof Dunstan says the findings suggest any prolonged sedentary behaviour, such as sitting at a desk or computer for work, could be risky.

The answer is to "move more, more often".

"In addition to doing regular exercise, avoid sitting for prolonged periods," he said.

"Too much sitting is bad for health."


 

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