Sitting for long hours can increase depression risk, finds study

A recent study found that people who spent too much time in a seated position between April and June 2020 were at a higher risk of suffering from depression. An analysis conducted in greater detail could help people improve their mental health. The studies’ findings were published in a journal titled ‘Frontiers in Psychiatry’.

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With the majority of the population having to stay indoors and work from home, at times in self-isolation, during the early months and peak spread of the coronavirus outbreak people got accustomed to sitting in one spot for long hours.

Daily commutes transformed into a small walk from the bedroom to the workroom and the time spent walking towards meetings was made into the living room. Clicking on Zoom links became the new way of entering meetings rather than having to walk to the meeting rooms and the time spent at the gym was taken over by online streaming services.

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All in all, people were forced to get used to sitting in a sedentary position due to the oncoming of the pandemic.

Jacob Meyer, the assistant professor of kinesiology at the Iowa State University and the lead author of the study said, “Sitting is a sneaky behaviour. It’s something we do all the time without thinking about it,” as per Hindustan Times.

The study looked to find a connection between physical activities and sedentary behaviours in relation to mental health. Over 3,000 people across the United States participated in the study. Participants were asked to self-report the time they spent engaged in activities such as sitting, looking at screens and exercising.

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The mental wellbeing of these participants was understood using the standard clinical scales. Data revealed that the participants who were meeting the United States’ physical activity guidelines decreased their physical activity by 32 percent on average upon the onset of the coronavirus guidelines.

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Meyer suggested that those sitting in a particular position for long hours can improve their mood and their mental health by even a little bit of movement.