The Damage of Prolonged Sitting Can Be Reversed With 5-Minute Exercise

Sitting around a little too much? A recent study conducted by researchers at Indiana University has found that a five-minute walk could help to reverse the potential damage of sitting for up to three hours or more. Prolonged sitting can increase the risk of issues with leg arteries and poor posture as well, according to findings published in the journal Medicine & Science in Sports & Exercise.

"American adults sit for approximately eight hours a day," said lead study author Saurabh Thosar, a postdoctoral researcher at Oregon Health & Science University, in a news release. "The impairment in endothelial function is significant after just one hour of sitting. It is interesting to see that light physical activity can help in preventing this impairment."

For their findings, researchers recruited 11 healthy male participants between the ages of 20 and 35. All participants took part in randomized trials; one had the participants sit for three hours straight without moving their legs while the other measured participants' femoral artery functionality by using a blood pressure cuff and ultrasound technology during movements on the treadmill. Measurements were taken at the beginning of the study and at one-,two- and three-hour marks.

Researchers found that hour after hour of sedentary behavior resulted in blood pooling in the legs, which can affect how the arteries function and how the blood flows in and out of the vessels.

"There is plenty of epidemiological evidence linking sitting time to various chronic diseases and linking breaking sitting time to beneficial cardiovascular effects, but there is very little experimental evidence," added Thosar. "We have shown that prolonged sitting impairs endothelial function, which is an early marker of cardiovascular disease, and that breaking sitting time prevents the decline in that function."

During the second trial, participants were required to walk on the treadmill for five minutes during the three hour sitting session. The speed ran at about two miles per hour (mph). After measuring the participants' femoral artery, they found that many showed signs of reversing potential leg artery damage.

Researchers concluded the findings by reiterating the necessity of physical activity throughout the day.