Your office chair could be a killer. New research shows that folks who spent most of their workday sitting were 16% more prone to an early death, compared to folks in non-sitting jobs. The Taiwanese study did offer workers a glimmer of hope, however: Getting up & moving a bit during the workday or adding a bit of leisure-time exercise greatly reduced the risk. The researchers hope that, someday, days spent sitting for work might be looked upon as just another unwanted, unhealthy habit. “Prolonged occupational sitting is [now] considered normal,” the investigators said. But more information on just how fatal a life spent sitting can be may “denormalize this common behavior, similar to the processes of denormalizing smoking.” The study was led by Dr. Chi-Pang Wen of the National Health Research Institute in Zhunan, Taiwan. It was published Jan. 19 in the journal JAMA Network Open. Numerous studies have already found that as hours per day spent sitting rise, health declines. And sitting’s dangers may not be simply that sitting equals time not spent in activity. There could be something specific to the posture of sitting that is especially harmful, the research team said. Sitting may bring about a weakening of the legs and trunk and “increased blood flow to lower extremities,” as well as low-grade inflammation, Wen’s group explained. In turn, that could…  read on >  read on >

Getting bored with your treadmill or exercise bike? Picking up a couple dumbbells instead of lacing up your running shoes once in a while won’t do your heart any harm, a new study reports. Splitting the recommended amount of physical activity between aerobic and resistance exercises reduces the risk of heart disease just as well as an aerobic-only workout regimen, researchers found. “If you’re bored with aerobic exercise and want variety or you have joint pain that makes running long distances difficult, our study shows you can replace half of your aerobic workout with strength training to get the same cardiovascular benefits,” said lead researcher Duck-chul Lee, a professor of kinesiology at Iowa State University. “The combined workout also offers some other unique health benefits, like improving your muscles,” Lee added in a university news release. Heart disease is the United States’ top killer, accounting for approximately one in three deaths, researchers said in background notes. Many studies have shown that aerobic exercise benefits the heart, especially for those with excess weight, but few have compared those results to resistance exercise, the researchers said. For the study, the team tracked more than 400 people ages 35 to 70 for a year. All were overweight or obese, and all had high blood pressure. Participants were randomly assigned to one of four groups – resistance exercise only,…  read on >  read on >

Using two feet or two wheels to get back and forth to work each day could reduce the inflammation that leads to cancer, heart disease and diabetes, new research shows. So-called “active commuting” — walking or biking to work — for at least 45 minutes daily lowered levels of a blood marker for inflammation called C-reactive protein (CRP), Finnish researchers report. That was true even after the team factored in any other exercise the active commuters might have been doing. Avoiding cars and buses to get to work is also good for the planet, they noted. So, “in addition to climate change mitigation, active commuting could lead to public health benefits,” concluded a team led by Sara Allaouat, a researcher at the University of Eastern Finland in Kuopio. It’s normal for people to suffer brief periods of inflammation, which is part of the body’s healthy short-term immune response. However, chronic inflammation lasts for months or years, and prior research has shown that it can raise the risk for a host of common health problems. Exercise has long been known to reduce inflammation. In the new study, Allaouat and her colleagues examined the commuting habits and blood CRP levels of over 6,200 middle-aged Finnish workers. Compared to folks who drove or took transit to work, those who spent at least 45 minutes per days walking or cycling…  read on >  read on >

Snowstorms are blanketing the United States, prompting countless Americans to pick up snow shovels and clear walkways and driveways. Shoveling snow is more than a chore, however — it can be a health hazard. The exertion of shoveling snow increases a person’s risk of heart attack or sudden cardiac arrest, warns the American Heart Association. Snow shoveling has a prominent place among physical activities that place extra stress on the heart, especially for folks who aren’t used to regular exercise, the AHA says. “Shoveling a little snow off your sidewalk may not seem like hard work. However, the strain of heavy snow shoveling may be as or even more demanding on the heart than taking a treadmill stress test, according to research we’ve conducted,” said Barry Franklin, director of preventive cardiology and cardiac rehabilitation at Corewell Health East William Beaumont University Hospital, in Royal Oak, Mich. Shoveling snow is mostly arm work, which is more taxing and demanding on the heart than leg work, Franklin explained. In addition, people straining to lift a heavy shovelful of snow often unconsciously hold their breath, which causes a big increase in heart rate and blood pressure, he said. Since people mostly stand still as they shovel, their legs don’t move much as they work. This results in blood pooling in their legs and feet, denying the heart part…  read on >  read on >

Using marijuana can help folks better enjoy a good workout, but it’s not going to boost their athletic performance, a new study has found. A small group of runners reported greater enjoyment and a more intense “runner’s high” when they exercised after using marijuana, according to new findings published recently in the journal Sports Medicine. But runners also reported that exercise felt significantly more difficult if they were high on THC, the chemical in weed that produces intoxication. “The bottom-line finding is that cannabis before exercise seems to increase positive mood and enjoyment during exercise, whether you use THC or CBD, but THC products specifically may make exercise feel more effortful,” said lead researcher Laurel Gibson, a research fellow with the University of Colorado Boulder’s Center for Health and Addiction: Neuroscience, Genes and Environment (CU Change). The findings defy the long-held stereotype of the couch-bound stoner, the researchers noted. “We have an epidemic of sedentary lifestyle in this country, and we need new tools to try to get people to move their bodies in ways that are enjoyable,” said senior study author Angela Bryan, a professor of psychology and neuroscience at Colorado and co-director of CU Change. “If cannabis is one of those tools, we need to explore it, keeping in mind both the harms and the benefits,” Bryan added in a university news release.…  read on >  read on >