Taking breaks from sitting just may decrease your risk for breast and colon cancer
Today being presented at the annual conference of the American Institute for Cancer Research in Washington, D.C. is new analysis demonstrating that over 90,000 new cancer cases each year in the United States just may be attributed to extend time sitting and inactivity. This references around 49,000 cases of breast cancer and 43,000 of colon cancer.
Dr. Christine Friedenreich, epidemiologist at Alberta Health Services in Calgary, Canada had examined over 200 cancer studies worldwide and discovered convincing evidence which showed physical activity does decrease the risk of breast, colon and endometrial cancer by 25 to 30 percent.
Dr. Alpa Patel, PhD, epidemiologist with the American Cancer Society had reviewed the analysis and found the numbers to be “very reasonable estimates.”
For a long time now health experts have been aware that physical activity does reduce the risk of chronic diseases which includes obesity, heart disease and cancer. Dr. Friedenreich calls attention to the fact that this new analysis gives estimates of the number of cases which could have been prevented if people where physically active.
Dr. Patel and other researchers have examined the dangers from sitting for extended time periods which is called “sitting disease”.
In the study consisting of 123,000 people Dr. Friedenreich had found the longer period of time spent sitting the higher the risk for earlier death. She also noted that even among those people who were physically active on a regular basis the risk for premature death was higher for those who spent more time sitting.
Alice Bender, registered dietician with the American Institute for Cancer Research had added that a daily brisk walk for at least thirty minutes over time could lower a person’s risk for breast and colon cancer.
Dr. Patel stressed even if you have a half hour of aerobic activity a day you need to make sure you are not sitting for the rest of the day, you need to get up and take breaks from sitting.
Professor James Levine, at the Mayo Clinic in Rochester Minnesota, added that many people sit from seven to nine and half hours a day. If you sat for an hour it is too long.
Just how much exercise should an adult do everyday? According to the Mayo Clinic, most healthy adults require 150 minutes of moderate aerobic activity or 75 minutes of vigorous aerobic activity.
However, this still does not mean you should sit all day long, get up and stretch every 45 minutes, walk down to the break room, go outside and get some fresh air.
Take a walk around the park in Detroit:
East Jefferson and East Grand Boulevard
|Detroit
800 Woodward Avenue
Detroit
2600 East Atwater
Detroit
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