A sedentary lifestyle, where you sit or don’t move around much, can lead to health problems like high blood pressure, memory problems, obesity, and heart disease. Now, a new study by scientists from the University of Southern California and the University of Arizona has discovered that it can also increase the risk of dementia in older people.
In this study, they used a special computer program to look at how sitting too much relates to dementia. The results showed that spending a lot of time sitting down can make your brain age faster. For people who are 60 years old or older and spend more than 10 hours each day sitting, the risk of getting dementia goes up a lot.
To do this research, they collected information from over 50,000 people in the UK. They gave them devices to wear on their wrists that measured how much they moved for a whole week. Then, they used a computer to look at this data and see how active or inactive people were.
What’s interesting is that it’s not just about how long you sit at one time; it’s about how much time you spend sitting overall. So, even if you sit for a long time at work or while watching TV, it’s not as bad for your brain if you make sure to move around at other times during the day.
But here’s some good news: if you sit for less than 10 hours a day, it doesn’t seem to increase your risk of dementia as much. So, if your job involves sitting a lot, it’s okay as long as you try to stand up and move around regularly.
This study is another reminder that sitting too much is not good for your health, especially as you get older. It’s important to find ways to be more active and not spend too much time just sitting around. Other studies have also shown that staying active as you get older can make you happier and keep your brain working well.
