A major 12-year study of more than 41,000 adults found that sitting too little may carry health risks for people in physically demanding jobs, suggesting public health advice should be tailored to different lifestyles.
For years, health experts have hammered home a simple message: sit less and move more. It sounds straightforward, but new research suggests the reality may be far more complicated.
A large study involving more than 41,000 adults in China has found that sitting too little could be associated with health risks too. The research, published in the Journal of Sport and Health Science, followed participants for nearly 12 years and discovered that the lowest risk of death or major cardiovascular events occurred among people who spent around four hours sitting each day.
Researchers found that people who sat for fewer than two hours daily faced a higher risk of poor health outcomes than those who sat for a moderate amount of time. That finding challenges the long-held assumption that reducing sitting is always beneficial.
The explanation may lie in the type of work people do. More than 60 percent of participants in the lowest-sitting category worked in physically demanding occupations such as farming and construction. These individuals were not avoiding sedentary lifestyles by choice. Instead, they spent long days performing continuous physical labour.
The study highlights what researchers call the “physical activity paradox.” While exercise during leisure time is widely linked to better health, prolonged physical exertion at work does not always produce the same benefits. A farmer working fields all day or a construction worker performing repetitive heavy tasks may place significant strain on the body without receiving the cardiovascular advantages associated with recreational exercise.
Researchers also modelled the effects of swapping 30 minutes of daily activities. Among people who already sat for four hours or more, replacing sitting time with moderate-to-vigorous exercise was linked to lower health risks. However, among those sitting less than four hours daily, replacing some physical activity with sitting was associated with reduced risk.
According to reporting by Study Finds, the findings suggest health recommendations should consider a person’s overall daily workload. For physically demanding workers, rest may not be a luxury. It may be an important part of staying healthy.
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