Category: In The News
100 Ways to Stand Up For Your Health (Prevention)
Prevention magazine recently featured a list of 100 ways to break up your sedentary time on. From their website:
At Home
1. Hide your remote. If you must watch TV, at least stand up to change the channel.
2. When cooking or baking, ditch the hand mixer and use a wooden spoon instead.
3. Take each family member’s laundry upstairs separately.
4. When tidying up, put things away in multiple small trips rather than one big haul.
5. Chop fresh vegetables instead of buying frozen ones.
6. Invest in quality pots and pans; the heavier they are, the more energy it’ll take to use them.
7. Paint, hang curtains, or finish any other home-improvement task on your to-do list.
8. Stand up and march during your favorite TV shows. (Try our Couch-Potato Workout.)
9. Rather than yell toward family members in other rooms, walk over to talk.
10. Stand while styling your hair and putting on makeup.
11. Walk around your home, yard, or neighborhood while on the phone.
12. Hand-wash dishes instead of using the dishwasher.
13. Wash your car instead of taking it through the car wash.
14. Put most-used items on top or bottom shelves so you have to reach for them.
15. Leave your cell phone in one location, so when you need it, you must go to it.
16. Start a compost pile in your yard.
17. Help your kids clean their rooms.
18. Organize a closet.
19. Rake the leaves as a family.
20. Give the delivery guy a break; when you order food in, pick it up yourself.
21. Take a shower instead of a bath.
22. Walk to the mailbox instead of checking the mail from your car.
23. Plant or weed a garden or care for indoor plants.
24. Ask for the paper to be left at the end of your driveway instead of by your front door.
25. Give your dog a bath instead of paying someone else to do it.
26. Instead of sitting and reading, listen to books on tape as you walk, clean, or garden.
27. Preset the timer on your TV to turn off after an hour to remind you to do something more active.
28. Slide a small trampoline under your couch and pull it out for Real Housewives marathons.
29. Put up more Christmas lights.
30. The next time it snows, up your karma and shovel your neighbor’s sidewalk too.
31. Turn on tunes and dance while cooking.
More Discussion Around SBRN’s Proposed Definition of Sedentary Behaviours Published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism
Earlier this year, SBRN published an updated definition of the terms “sedentary” and “sedentary behaviour” in response to confusion around the use of the terms in the published literature.
Recently, a letter to the editor by Ragnar Viir and Alar Veraksitš was published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism where concern with SBRN’s proposed definition of sedentary behaviour was expressed. The letter can be read in full here.
Dr. Mark Tremblay, a founding member of SBRN, has responded to this letter and his response can be read in full here.
SBRN Presentations At ICPAPH 2012
The 3rd International Congress on Physical Activity and Public Health is coming up later this month in Sydney, Australia, and SBRN members will be giving several presentations on each day of the conference. SBRN will also be holding it’s own meeting immediately prior to the opening ceremony on October 31.
Below is a list of presentations by SBRN members in chronological order. If you would like to add your presentation to the list, or if you spot an error, please send me a message at tsaunders (at) cheo.on.ca. You can find the full ICPAPH program and book of abstracts here.
See you in Sydney!
Wednesday, October 31:
| Title: | SBRN Inaugural Meeting (Pre Conference) |
| Time: | 12:15 – 13:15 |
| Room: |
Bayside Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
Sophie O’Connell
| Title: | Seasonal Variation in Physical Activity, Sedentary Behaviour and Sleep in UK Adults |
| Session: | Patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour in adults |
| Room: | Room 201 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 3.00 |
Jeff Valance
| Title: | Associations between sitting time and health-related quality of life and psychosocial health among older men |
| Session: | Physical activity and psychosocial health in adults |
| Room: | Room 202 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 1.00 |
Erica Hinckson
| Title: | Principals’ and teachers’ perspectives about strategies to interrupt sitting time in primary school classrooms |
| Session: | Sedentary behaviour in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 103 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 6.00 |
Dale Esliger
| Title: | Understanding the age-related increase in sedentary time in children and youth: An uphill battle |
| Session: | Sedentary behaviour in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 103 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 4.00 |
Andrew Atkin
| Title: | Determinants of change in children’s objectively measured sedentary time |
| Session: | Sedentary behaviour in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 103 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 3.00 |
Natalie Pearson:
| Title: | Associations between physical activity and sedentary behaviour in adolescents: A systematic review |
| Session: | Sedentary behaviour in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 103 |
| Session Date: | 31/10/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
Thursday, November 1:
Mette Aadahl
| Title: | Temporal changes in sleep duration, domain-specific sedentary behaviour and physical activity. A survey among 25 to 79-year-old Danish adults |
| Session: | Trends in physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 201 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
Ingrid Hendriksen
| Title: | Trends in physical inactivity and sedentary behavior in the Dutch population |
| Session: | Trends in physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 201 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 6.00 |
Stuart Biddle:
| Title: | Agreement between accelerometer-determined sedentary time and self-report measures: Project STAND |
| Session: | The crisis of measurement in physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 204A |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 6.00 |
Dylan Cliff
| Title: | Levels and bouts of sedentary behaviour and physical activity: Associations with cardio-metabolic health in overweight and obese children |
| Session: | Activity and weight in children and young people (ISPAH Council on Physical Activity and Obesity) |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 3.00 |
Travis Saunders
| Title: | The Acute Impact of Sedentary Behaviour and Physical Activity on Markers of Cardiometabolic Risk in Healthy Children and Youth |
| Session: | Sitting, physical activity and health in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1330 – 1500 |
| Presentation Order: | 7.00 |
Matthew Buman
| Title: | Estimated replacement effects of accelerometer-derived physical activity and self-reported sleep duration on chronic disease biomarkers |
| Session: | Sitting, physical activity and health in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1330 – 1500 |
| Presentation Order: | 8.00 |
| Title: | Multidimensional correlates of preschool children’s physical activity |
| Session: | Correlates of physical activity in children and young people |
| Room: | Room 201 |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
Dylan Cliff
| Title: | A hitchhiker’s guide to assessing sedentary behavior among young people: Deciding what method to use |
| Session: | Issues in the measurement of physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 204A |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 1.00 |
Gemma Ryde
| Title: | Validation of a novel measure of occupational sitting |
| Session: | Issues in the measurement of physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 204A |
| Session Date: | 01/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
Bronwyn Clark
| Title: | Reliability and Validity of Adults’ Recall of Past-Day Sitting Time |
| Session: | Issues in the measurement of physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Session Date: | 1/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 15:30-17:00 |
Sebastien Chastin
| Title: | SIT: Sedentary behaviour International Taxonomy. Expert concensus project and folksonomy. |
| Session: | Issues in the measurement of physical activity and sedentary behaviour |
| Room: | Room 204A |
| Session Date: | 1/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 9.00 |
Friday, November 2
Katrien Wijndaele
| Title: | Increased objective sedentary time is associated with increased clustered cardio-metabolic risk – A six-year prospective study (ProActive) |
| Session Date: | 2/11/2012 |
| Presentation Time: | 11:30-11:35 |
Maike Neuhaus
| Title: | Efficacy of an integrated approach to reduce sitting time in office workers |
| Session: | Workplace sitting: Patterns and interventions |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
Gemma Ryde
| Title: | Are we chained to our desk? Assessing desk based sitting using a new objective measure of occupational sitting time |
| Session: | Workplace sitting: Patterns and interventions |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
Anne Grunseit
| Title: | “Thinking on your feet”: A qualitative evaluation of an installation of sit-stand desks in a medium-sized workplace |
| Session: | Workplace sitting: Patterns and interventions |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 5.00 |
Erica Hinckson
| Title: | Effects of school distance and travel mode on sedentary time in children |
| Session: | Active transport: Children and young people |
| Room: | Room 202 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 9.00 |
Sebastien Chastin
| Title: | Developing human dynamics models of physical activity and sedentary behavior to inform interventions. |
| Session: | Intervention evaluation: Issues and challenges |
| Room: | Room 204A |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1100 – 1230 |
| Presentation Order: | 4.00 |
Hayley Christian
| Title: | The built environment and children’s physical activity – what is ‘child friendly’? |
| Session: | Environments and physical activity: Children and young people |
| Room: | Room 202 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 5.00 |
Stuart Biddle
| Title: | Associations between physical activity and sedentary behaviour in children: A systematic review |
| Session: | Scientific Poster Session 2 |
| Room | Bayside Gallery |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1705 – 1830 |
Valerie Carson
| Title: | Adherence to the Canadian Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for the Early Years (aged 0-4 years) among children from Kingston, Canada |
| Session: | Scientific Poster Session 2 |
| Room | Bayside Gallery |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1705 – 1830 |
Mark Tremblay
| Title: | Development and launch of the Canadian Sedentary Behaviour Guidelines for the Early Years |
| Session: | Scientific Poster Session 2 |
| Room | Bayside Gallery |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1705 – 1830 |
Mette Aadahl
| Title: | Reduction of sitting time in sedentary men and women. A randomized controlled Trial (Sedentary Intervention Trial) |
| Session: | Scientific Poster Session 2 |
| Room | Bayside Gallery |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1705 – 1830 |
Saturday, November 3
Kylie Hesketh
| Title: | How do infants spend their time? Physical activity and restraint in 3, 9 and 19 month old children |
| Session: | Patterns of physical activity and sedentary behaviour in children |
| Room: | Room 201 |
| Session Date: | 02/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 1530 – 1700 |
| Presentation Order: | 2.00 |
Cindy Gray
| Title: | Can professional soccer clubs help male fans lose weight and become more physically active? Preliminary evidence from the |
| Session: | Physical activity and weight interventions |
| Room: | Room 102 |
| Session Date: | 03/11/2012 |
| Session Time: | 09:30-10:00 |
| Presentation Order: | 3.00 |
More discussion of the definition for sedentary behaviour
Earlier this year more than 50 SBRN members signed a letter promoting an updated definition of the term “sedentary behaviour” (you can view that letter here). That discussion has continued, as SBRN member Dr Ragnar Viir published (with Alar Veraksitš) a comment on the new definition on the website of Applied Physiology, Nutrition, and Metabolism (available here).
Drs Viir and Veraksitš write:
We welcome the proposal by Sedentary Behaviour Research Network (2012) to define standard terms whereby to describe our researches into the modern problem of excessive sitting. However, we have some concerns. Neither standing nor sitting can adequately be described just in terms of energy expenditure or neuromuscular activity. We must also include the seemingly subtle but measurable and significant effect of gravity on those muscles holding the body upright (Viir et al. 2007; Veraksitš et al. 2012).
Furthermore, if one defines “reclining” as lying down, then that is not “sedentary behaviour” at all; on the contrary, it has the crucial function of obtaining relief from the above effort, as we have shown (Viir et al. 2007; Veraksitš et al. 2012), and this has important application in rehabilitation (Viir et al.
2008).For our research to be thorough it is important to be alert to the significant effect of gravity, subtle though it may be.
In response to this comment, Dr Mark Tremblay wrote:
I appreciate the concerns expressed by Drs. Viir and Veraksitš. They raise an important point regarding the effects of gravity on physiological functions while in different postures. Furthermore, nuances on how to define “reclining” are raised. The proposal by SBRN that sedentary behaviour be defined as any waking behaviour characterized by an energy expenditure ≤1.5 METs while in a sitting or reclining posture does not disregard the potential importance of gravity or other mechanical (e.g., pressure on tissues of contact points from sitting or type of clothing being worn) or environmental (e.g., indoor vs. outdoor) factors that may provoke, mediate, or moderate physiological or even cognitive functions. Nor does the definition preclude the study of sedentary behaviours such that perhaps a whole “family” of sedentary behaviour subcategories may emerge based on their physiological influence.
The fact that this discussion is occurring is evidence that our earlier letter is achieving its objective and that the mission of SBRN is being successfully pursued. Thanks and please keep the discussion going!
Both articles are available via the website of Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism.
Diabetologia: Sedentary time in adults and the association with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and death: systematic review and meta-analysis
From Diabetologia:
Aims/hypothesis
Sedentary (sitting) behaviours are ubiquitous in modern society. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to examine the association of sedentary time with diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality.MethodsMedline, Embase and the Cochrane Library databases were searched for terms related to sedentary time and health outcomes. Cross-sectional and prospective studies were included. RR/HR and 95% CIs were extracted by two independent reviewers. Data were adjusted for baseline event rate and pooled using a random-effects model. Bayesian predictive effects and intervals were calculated to indicate the variance in outcomes that would be expected if new studies were conducted in the future.ResultsEighteen studies (16 prospective, two cross-sectional) were included, with 794,577 participants. Fifteen of these studies were moderate to high quality. The greatest sedentary time compared with the lowest was associated with a 112% increase in the RR of diabetes (RR 2.12; 95% credible interval [CrI] 1.61, 2.78), a 147% increase in the RR of cardiovascular events (RR 2.47; 95% CI 1.44, 4.24), a 90% increase in the risk of cardiovascular mortality (HR 1.90; 95% CrI 1.36, 2.66) and a 49% increase in the risk of all-cause mortality (HR 1.49; 95% CrI 1.14, 2.03). The predictive effects and intervals were only significant for diabetes.Conclusions/interpretationSedentary time is associated with an increased risk of diabetes, cardiovascular disease and cardiovascular and all-cause mortality; the strength of the association is most consistent for diabetes.
New Paper: Impact of “noncaloric” activity-related factors on the predisposition to obesity in children
From the Journal of Risk Management and Healthcare Policy:
The research related to childhood obesity generally emphasizes the impact of unhealthy eating and sedentary behavior as the main determinants of the predisposition to the positive energy balance that underlies excess body fat accumulation. Recent investigations have, however, demonstrated that “noncaloric” activity-related factors can induce a significant imbalance between spontaneous energy intake and energy expenditure. This is the case for short sleep duration that favors hormonal changes that increase hunger and energy intake. This agrees with our research experience demonstrating that short sleeping predicts the risk of obesity in children to a greater extent than sedentary behavior. Recent research by our team has also showed that demanding mental work promotes a substantial increase in energy intake without altering energy expenditure. In addition, our preliminary data suggest that the regular practice of school-related cognitive efforts is predictive of an increase in abdominal fat accumulation. As discussed in this paper, individual variations in brain oxygenation and its related cerebral aerobic fitness might play a role in the relationship between mental work, energy intake, and the risk of excess body weight.
The full paper is available for free here.
SBRN Publishes Updated Definition of Sedentary Behaviour, Part 2
Earlier this year SBRN published a new definition of sedentary behaviour in in French and English in the journals Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism, Movement & Sport Sciences – Science & Motricité and the African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation and Dance.
Although the APNM and AJPHERD versions have been online for a month or so, due to differences in publishing schedules the Movement & Sport Sciences issue was published online this past week. It can be found here.
Here is the definition of sedentary behaviour, as proposed by the SBRN membership:
We suggest that journals formally define sedentary behaviour as any waking behaviour characterized by an energy expenditure ≤1.5 METs while in a sitting or reclining posture. In contrast, we suggest that authors use the term “inactive” to describe those who are performing insufficient amounts of MVPA (i.e., not meeting specified physical activity guidelines).
Nous suggérons que les revues définissent de façon formelle le comportement sédentaire comme une situation d’éveil caractérisée par une dépense énergétique ≤1,5 METs en position assise ou allongée.En revanche, nous suggérons que les auteurs utilisent le terme « inactif » pour décrire les individus ayant un niveau insuffisant d’activité physique d’intensité modérée à intense (MVPA), c’est-à-dire, n’atteignant pas le seuil d’activité physique recommandé.
You can also access the full letter at the following links: English Letter / French Letter.
The definition can be cited as:
BMJ Open: Sedentary behaviour and life expectancy
From BMJ Open:
Objectives To determine the impact of sitting and television viewing on life expectancy in the USA.
Design Prevalence-based cause-deleted life table analysis.
Setting Summary RRs of all-cause mortality associated with sitting and television viewing were obtained from a meta-analysis of available prospective cohort studies. Prevalences of sitting and television viewing were obtained from the US National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey.
Primary outcome measure Life expectancy at birth.
Results The estimated gains in life expectancy in the US population were 2.00 years for reducing excessive sitting to <3 h/day and a gain of 1.38 years from reducing excessive television viewing to <2 h/day. The lower and upper limits from a sensitivity analysis that involved simultaneously varying the estimates of RR (using the upper and lower bounds of the 95% CI) and the prevalence of television viewing (±20%) were 1.39 and 2.69 years for sitting and 0.48 and 2.51 years for television viewing, respectively.
Conclusion Reducing sedentary behaviours such as sitting and television viewing may have the potential to increase life expectancy in the USA.
The full article is available for free here.
SBRN Updates, and an Important Survey
A lot has happened in the past few months and we thought this would be an excellent time for another quick SBRN update.
1. Sedentary behaviour definition letter published in 4 journals
Since our last update, the SBRN letter updating the definition of sedentary behaviour has been accepted/published in 2 additional journals:
Mental Health and Physical Activity and the African Journal for Physical, Health Education, Recreation & Dance.
As mentioned previously, the letter has also been published in Applied Physiology, Nutrition and Metabolism and Movement & Sport Sciences – Science & Motricité.
Thanks to everyone who contributed to the letter! Please cite the article in your own work, and refer people to it when you are acting as a reviewer.
The citation for APNM is:
Sedentary Behaviour Research Network. 2012. Standardized use of the terms “sedentary” and “sedentary behaviours”. Appl Physiol Nutr Metab. 37: 540–542.
2. Informal SBRN Meetings at ICDAM, ISBNPA & ACSM
Continue Reading
British Heart Foundation Releases Report on Sedentary Behaviour
The British Heart Foundation National Centre has just released an evidence briefing focused on sedentary behaviour. From their website:
The benefits of a physically active lifestyle are well established and reflected in public health guidelines and policy. In recent years there has been growing interest in the role that sedentary behaviour may play in health and wellbeing.
Informed by this emerging body of evidence, public health guidelines now recommend that people of all ages should avoid prolonged periods of sedentary behaviour and break up periods of sitting.
This new BHFNC evidence briefing provides an overview of the evidence relating to sedentary behaviour and public health.
It defines sedentary behaviour and summarises the risks and current levels as well as the implications for policy and practice. It also reviews the evidence for the effectiveness of interventions to reduce sedentary behaviour.
The full report can be downloaded for free here.
