Sitting down less can cut diabetes risk

Sitting down too much during leisure time increases your risk of diabetes even if you work out regularly, scientists warn.

Those who sit very little and exercise a lot cut their risk of obesity – strongly linked to type 2 diabetes – by up to three-quarters, a study shows.

It appears that long periods of inactive leisure time reduce the benefits derived from physical exercise, say the researchers from University College London.

This means the best way to cut the risk of obesity – and therefore of diabetes – is to sit down less as well as taking more exercise, The Daily Mail says.

Researchers looked at the effects of being inactive during hours away from work – such as watching TV, sewing, or sitting at a desk – on 4,000 civil servants over five-year periods.

After five years, those who spent less than 12 hours a week sitting and more than four hours exercising had a quarter the obesity risk of those who sat for more than 25 hours a week and did less than 90 minutes’ physical activity.

Figures show that the average adult spends 90 per cent of their leisure time sitting down and that people who sit for longer have bigger waist sizes.

Follow NEWS.am Medicine on Facebook and Twitter