How Britons spend two-and-a-half months a year sitting
- Analysis by shows nearly half of women and a third of men are inactive
- Average man is sat down for 78 days of the year – a fifth of his lifetime
- Women tend to me more on their feet than men but do far less exercise
Sophie Borland Health Editor For The Daily Mail
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The average British adult now walks less than half a mile a day, a report reveals today.
We also spend two-and-a-half months of the year sat down as part of couch potato lifestyles that greatly increase the risk of cancer, heart disease and death.
An analysis by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) has found that almost half of women and a third of men are inactive.
This is defined as doing less than 30 minutes’ moderate exercise a week including brisk walking, cycling or heavy housework.
Adults in the UK walk less than half a mile each day on average – down from almost three-quarters of a mile in the 1970s, when cars were used far less.
The report also estimates that the average man is sat down for 78 days of the year – a fifth of his lifetime.
Women sit down slightly less – 74 days – but to cancel this out, they do fewer hours of physical activity. A shocking 46.1 per cent are inactive compared to 32 per cent of men.
Adults in the UK walk less than half a mile each day on average – down from almost three-quarters of a mile in the 1970s, when cars were used far less
Dr Mike Knapton, medical director of the BHF, said that although women tend to be on their feet more than men, they do far less exercise.
But he said it was vital for adults to avoid sitting down for prolonged periods – as well as doing physical activity – to stay healthy.
‘Physical inactivity is one of the most significant global health crises of the moment,’ he said.
‘Levels of physical inactivity and sedentary behaviour in the UK remain stubbornly high, and combined these two risk factors present a substantial threat to our cardiovascular health and risk of early death.
‘Making physical activity easier and more accessible for all is of paramount importance if we are to reduce the burden of inactivity-related ill health.’
Research by Public Health England in 2014 blamed sedentary lifestyles for as many as one in six deaths.
Inactivity has been linked to increased rates of cancer, heart disease, dementia, thinning of the bones and muscular conditions such as arthritis.
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Today’s report analysed figures from the Government’s Health Survey for England, an annual lifestyle questionnaire given to 8,000 adults.
Its findings are even bleaker than NHS statistics published last week which suggested only a quarter of adults were inactive.
The Government recommends that adults do 150 minutes of physical activity a week, including some strength bearing exercises.
This report does not estimate how many adults manage this but last week’s figures suggested it was half of women and two-thirds of men.
Dr Justin Varney, lead for adult health and wellbeing for Public Health England, said: ‘Doing 150 minutes of activity a week can reduce the risk of heart disease by a third, and helps prevent other serious health problems like Type 2 diabetes and some cancers.’
The report also estimates that the average man is sat down for 78 days of the year – a fifth of his lifetime
Last week, researchers claimed a long soak in the bath burned as many calories as a 30-minute walk.
An hour in 40C water burns off 140 calories and lowers blood sugar even more than exercise.
It follows earlier studies which found that men who frequently use saunas cut their risk of heart attack and stroke.
Researchers at Loughborough University found that steaming in a bath may, like exercise, produce the ‘heat shock’ proteins thought to remove sugar from the blood stream and transport it to the muscle cells where it is burned as fuel.
Their study of 14 men could provide a new way to ward off high blood pressure among those who fail to go for a walk as often as they should. It is published in the journal Temperature and lead author Dr Steve Faulkner has written about the findings on website The Conversation.
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