July 24, 2012
Australia
The study of
almost 2,000 elderly Australians found that over
60s watch TV for an average of nearly four hours
a day, about an hour longer than younger adults.
The study, led by Dr Paul Gardiner from UQ's
School of Population Health, was one of the
first to examine the effects of sedentary
behavior and TV watching on older men and women.
“Up until now, most research about sitting and
watching TV has been focused on children, while
older adults have potentially the most to gain
from changing their behaviour,” Dr Gardiner
said. Researchers found that, for each hour a
person spends watching TV, their risk of
developing metabolic syndrome increases.
Metabolic syndrome is a cluster of
cardiovascular disease predictors linked to the
onset of type 2 diabetes. Other lifestyle
factors linked to metabolic syndrome include a
lack of regular exercise, poor nutrition, high
alcohol consumption and smoking. Dr Gardiner
said even light activity, such as folding
washing while watching TV, can reduce the risk
of developing metabolic syndrome. “Reducing
sedentary behavior may be a feasible and
practical way for older adults to improve their
health and may be particularly important for
those whose health or physical functioning
limits their participation in moderate-intensity
physical activity," he said. Previous studies
had shown that sedentary behavior has a unique
physiological effect on the body and that this
was different from the effect of lack of
exercise. An intervention program developed and
run by Dr Gardiner and involving face-to-face
sessions with older people and feedback on their
behavior, saw sitting time reduced by an average
of 30 minutes per day. “The next step is to
examine whether reducing this sitting time
translates into improvements in health and
function,” he said. Dr Gardiner will present his
findings at the World Congress of Active Ageing
in Glasgow in August.
