Sitting too much may double your risk of dying, study shows

Need a health boost? You might want to start with getting up from your couch or computer desk.

According to a study in the March 26 issue of Archives of Internal Medicine, researchers discovered that people who sat for 11 hours a day or more were 40 percent more likely to die - from any cause. The researchers also found the odds of dying were 15 percent higher for those who sit between eight to 11 hours a day compared to those who sit less than four hours a day.

Researchers relied on self-reported data from 22,497 individuals 45 years or older from the 45 and Up study, the largest look at aging in the Southern Hemisphere. The study has interviewed over 265,000 men and women across New South Wales and Australia, focusing on about 10 percent of that group for additional data over the coming decades. The researchers determined sitting was associated with a higher death risk after ruling out other factors including gender, age, education, urban/rural residence, physical activity, body mass index, smoking status, self-rated health and disability.

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