Sitting = sadness. Really.


A new study shows an association between sitting time and mental health. Particularly, the longer a person sits, the more likely he or she is to have symptoms of depression. The findings, first reported in Runner's World[1] , were reached by researchers from Victoria University and the University of Queensland.


The study, published in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine[2] , is based on 8,950 women ages 50 to 55 who answered surveys in 2001, 2004, 2007 and 2010.


Researchers took note of their depressive symptoms and physical activity levels, and also grouped them based on how much time they spent sitting each day (four or fewer hours a day, four to seven hours a day, or more than seven hours a day).


The study found that women who sat for more than seven hours a day were at a 47 percent higher risk for depressive symptoms, compared with women who sat for four or fewer hours a day. And women who didn't do any exercise had a 99 percent higher risk for depressive symptoms, compared with those who exercised according to physical activity guidelines.


Runner's World reported that those who sat the most and didn't exercise had the highest risk of all, with a tripled risk of experiencing depressive symptoms[3] .


Of course, the study only shows an association and doesn't tease out whether depression causes one to want to sit or incline to inactivity, or if sitting for too long actually makes one depressed.


The Telegraph reported back in 2003 on a study of 25,000 people that showed an association between sitting in front of a computer for five hours a day[4] and experiencing feelings of depression and anxiety. And Men's Health reported last year that slouching in one's chair[5] can sap energy and increase depressive feelings.


Need even more of a reason to just stand up already? Click through the slideshow:



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  • It Ups Diabetes Risk


    <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/05/sitting-too-long-diabetes-risk_n_917220.html" target="_hplink">Back in October,</a> researchers from the University of Missouri published results suggesting that sitting throughout most of the day may put individuals at higher risk for diabetes, obesity and non-alcoholic fatty liver disease -- even if you clear time for daily exercise.




  • It Increases Your Overall Death Risk


    <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/06/24/sitting-too-long-death_n_884152.html" target="_hplink">As HuffPost editor Amanda Chan reported back in June,</a> a study in the <em>American Journal of Epidemiology</em> found that women who sat six or more hours a day were nearly 40 percent more likely to die over a 13-year-stretch than those who sat less than three hours.

    As for men? Sitting for more than six hours was linked with an 18-percent higher risk of death.




  • Just A Few Mins (In Front Of the Tube) Takes A Toll


    An <a href="http://bjsm.bmj.com/content/early/2011/08/01/bjsm.2011.085662" target="_hplink">August study from the <em>British Journal of Sports Medicine</em></a> found that every hour you sit in front of the TV, you can slash your life expectancy by nearly 22 minutes.

    And watching the tube for six hours a day? That type of seriously sedentary behavior can cut your life expectancy <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/08/17/1-hour-of-tv-lifespan-22-minutes_n_929321.html" target="_hplink">by five years. </a>




  • It's Linked With Cancer


    <a href="http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/03/8616170-if-youre-sitting-down-you-may-be-increasing-your-cancer-risk" target="_hplink">As MSNBC reported,</a> sitting may be responsible for more than 170,000 cases of cancer yearly -- with breast and colon cancers being the most influenced by rates of physical activity (and inactivity).

    But according to that article, a little bit of walking can go a long way.

    "For many of the most common cancers, it seems like something as simple as a brisk walk for 30 minutes a day can help reduce cancer risk," Christine Friedenreich, an epidemiologist with Alberta Health Services <a href="http://vitals.msnbc.msn.com/_news/2011/11/03/8616170-if-youre-sitting-down-you-may-be-increasing-your-cancer-risk" target="_hplink">told MSNBC.</a>




  • It Makes Your Bottom Bigger


    <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2011/12/05/sitting-down-makes-your-bottom-bigger-say-experts_n_1129377.html" target="_hplink">As our UK compatriots recently wrote,</a> researchers have found that putting pressure on certain body parts (i.e., your bottom) can produce up to 50 percent more fat than usual.

    <a href="http://www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/2011/12/05/sitting-down-makes-your-bottom-bigger-say-experts_n_1129377.html" target="_hplink">HuffPost UK reported:</a> "In a bid to explain why sedentary behaviour causes weight-gain, scientists believe that the precursors to fat cells turn into flab (and end up producing more) when subjected to prolonged periods of sitting down, otherwise known as 'mechanical stretching loads.'"




  • It Could Raise Your Heart Attack Risk


    Not too long ago, <a href="http://health.yahoo.net/experts/menshealth/most-dangerous-thing-youll-do-all-day" target="_hplink"><em>Men's Health</em> covered a study</a> in the journal <em>Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise</em>, in which researchers from Louisiana found that people who sit for the majority of the day are 54 percent more likely to die of a heart attack. <a href="http://health.yahoo.net/experts/menshealth/most-dangerous-thing-youll-do-all-day" target="_hplink">Indeed, the investigators found</a> that sitting was an independent risk factor for serious cardiovascular events.




  • Stand Up with Us If You want to Live


    Yet another study shows sitting too much is simply unhealthy. It found those who sat for more than 11 hours a day were 40 percent more likely to die in the next three years than those who sat less than four hours per day.