Live Longer: Stop Watching TV!
Everyone knows that being a couch potato and watching too much TV isn’t healthy, but now there’s proof of just how bad it is — and it’s worse than you thought. According to the Australian Diabetes, Obesity, and Lifestyle Study, each hour of TV-viewing is associated with an 11 percent increased risk of death from any cause and a whopping 18 percent increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease!
It doesn’t matter if you are young or old, male or female, skinny or overweight, the findings hold true. Those who watched TV for four hours or more per day had an 80 percent increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease compared with those who watched less than two hours per day. And before you start thinking that the Television is evil, the same results apply to any sedentary activity. Four hours (or more) spent in front of a computer, playing video games, or even reading could be hazardous to your health. In fact, anyone who sits down for a long period of time may be at risk, the researchers say.
“What has happened is that a lot of the normal activities of daily living that involved standing up and moving the muscles in the body have been converted to sitting,” said David Dunstan, study author and researcher at the Baker IDI Heart and Diabetes Institute in Victoria, Australia. “For many people, on a daily basis they simply shift from one chair to another – from the chair in the car to the chair in the office to the chair in front of the television.”
It’s not difficult to figure out why being a couch potato is unhealthy. You don’t burn many calories while sitting on the couch watching TV. Frequent exercise, even engaging in light activity, can reduce the risk of heart disease and help prevent premature death. Those who watch less TV tend to be more active. They aren’t necessarily fitness freaks, but they are moving about.
Now, this doesn’t mean you have to throw your TV in the trash and join a gym, but it should make you think about being more active. Get up. Go outside. Take the dog for a walk. Clean the house. Play with the kids. It’s good for your heart and could help you live a longer, healthier life.
