Dangers of sedentary lifestyle: Why prolonged sitting is the new smoking?

Are you one of those who spend hours sitting at one place? If your answer is yes, then you need to stop sitting for prolonged hours, as it can be very dangerous for your overall health.

Humans are meant to be standing upright, as helps maintain your physique, while living a sedentary lifestyle has negative affects on your body as well as several health disadvantages, Healthline reported.

Want to know how a sedentary lifestyle impacts your body and health? Following is an explanation of everything that could happen if you sit all day.

Weight gain

Moving our body helps food get digested. All the sugar and fats that we eat, get processed by a molecule called, "lipoprotein lipase," which gets released from our muscles when we move.

If we spend most of our day sitting, then the production of these molecules will be lessened, causing our rear end to widen.

According to a study, men who sit all day tend to gain weight around their stomach, which is very harmful.

Weak legs and glutes

Not moving for long can lead to weakening of our lower leg muscles, increasing the chances of injury.

Pressure on back

As with leg and glute muscles, sitting for long, may cause your hip flexors to shorten. Sitting in a bad position may exert pressure on spine discs, which can lead to premature degeneration, or chronic pains.

Mental health risks

Studies have found that people with a sedentary lifestyle have higher chances of developing depression and anxiety.

Health risks

Emerging studies suggest that elongated periods of sitting increases certain types of cancer risks such as lung, uterine and colon.

Furthermore, research suggests, people who sit more, increase their chances of suffering a heart attack or a stroke by 147%. Sitting also increases risk of diabetes by 112%.

Being seated at one place for a longer period may also cause blood to gather in your legs which can lead to a condition called varicose veins or spider veins.