The practice of physical exercise can have disastrous effects on our physical and psychological health.
Sedentary lifestyle has become a real epidemic . Despite the fact that when walking through the streets you can find hundreds of runners doing their daily races, more than half of the population in the first world does not get enough exercise a week.
According to the WHO, a person has an inactive lifestyle when they do not get more than 90 minutes of physical activity per week. If we add to this some bad eating habits and the consumption of tobacco and alcohol, the Molotov cocktail is served.
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The 12 main health problems that a sedentary lifestyle can cause
All kinds of health problems, both physical and psychological, can be caused by not exercising enough. Our body is our most precious treasure, we only have one and we must take care of it.
That is why we are going to see a few problems associated with leading a sedentary lifestyle .
1. Bone problems
Leading a sedentary lifestyle can contribute to bone problems such as osteoporosis, arthritis, and osteoarthritis.
Several studies indicate that, in women, sitting 6 hours a day contributes to a loss of 1% of bone mass per year.
2. Increased risk of cancer
The habits of a sedentary life have been strongly related to an increase in the chances of suffering from oncological diseases .
Colon cancer has been especially related to this type of life, since lack of exercise contributes to reduced levels of certain hormones and protective enzymes in the digestive tract.
It has also been linked to prostate cancer in men and breast and endometrial cancer in women.
In addition, the food remains longer in the intestines and there is also a progressive worsening of the immune system.
3. Cardiovascular diseases
A sedentary lifestyle has been linked to an increased chance of suffering from heart problems , even claiming that it can double the risk of suffering from this type of problem.
It also contributes to high blood pressure .
4. Diabetes
Approximately 27% of diabetes cases are caused by not getting enough exercise . It is believed that sitting for an hour considerably increases the chances of suffering from this type of disease.
This is because a sedentary lifestyle directly affects the production and efficiency of insulin.
5. Premature death
Lack of physical activity, combined with poor eating habits, is the second leading cause of death in the developed world, after tobacco use.
In 2010, the WHO published a study in which it pointed out that each year some 3.2 million people die prematurely due to not getting enough exercise or taking care of themselves properly.
6. Lower energy
Being still for a long time makes you feel less like moving . In addition, people who do not carry out physical activity may not perform fully in their work due to lack of energy.
7. Cognitive problems
An inactive lifestyle can affect the brain , causing memory, attention and concentration problems to develop.
8. Metabolic problems
Remaining still for about 20 minutes, either lying down or sitting, slows down the metabolism.
If it stays like this for about 4 hours, the enzymes responsible for controlling cholesterol and fat levels are significantly reduced.
Sedentary women notice more the effects of menopause. On the other hand, exercising more frequently contributes to limiting the metabolic changes related to this cycle.
9. Obesity and overweight
Inactivity is addictive . The longer you stay still, the less you want to move. This leads to a vicious circle in which it becomes increasingly difficult to activate.
In addition, the lack of exercise contributes to an increase in appetite, causing the person to eat more calories than they require and than they will burn.
Eventually, weight can be gained, which can make the person obese since there is no caloric deficit.
According to a Harvard study, spending more time sitting on the sofa makes you want to eat more because irisin is no longer secreted, a substance whose action is to transform white fat into brown fat, a type of beneficial fat .
In any case, being thin is not a protective factor against the effects of a sedentary lifestyle, in fact, there are studies that suggest that there could be more thin people than obese victims of lack of exercise.
10. Psychological problems
Lack of movement can contribute to a depressive mood , as well as anxiety and stress problems.
When you move, whether doing daily activities or intense exercise, the nervous system benefits from the action of some neurotransmitters , such as dopamine and endorphins.
In the absence of these neurotransmitters, it is easier for there to be problems in this system that generates negative emotional states.
Also, and directly related to not having good eating habits, a sedentary lifestyle contributes to eating disorders.
11. Menor muscular time
When standing, the abdominal muscles remain stretched and tense . Instead, when you lie down, these muscles are not used. In the long run, a sedentary life causes the abdominals to become weak.
But not only the abs are affected by this. The buttocks become weaker as they are not used, causing them to become soft and poorly defined
In general, muscle mass is lost, which contributes to the loss of strength. As collateral effects of this loss, there are problems with posture and balance, as well as contractures and pain in the joints and muscles.
This consequence of a sedentary life, together with the loss of bone mass and weight gain, makes the person approach a situation in which they can manifest a motor disability.
12. Worst sex
Sedentary men produce lower quality sperm . In addition, his ejaculations are less numerous, in addition to the sperm becoming slow.
Less testosterone and other hormones involved in making sperm are produced. In addition, not exercising can increase the risk of erectile dysfunction.
combat sedentary lifestyle
The sedentary lifestyle has become the daily life of millions of people, which means that many are in need of medical help.
As it is a problem of almost pandemic proportions, the health services of many countries are being overwhelmed by diseases resulting from this lifestyle , such as the aforementioned diabetes, cancer of all kinds and osteoporosis.
That is why it is extremely necessary to start taking care of ourselves, and we can only do this ourselves. Although governments have tried to reduce unhealthy habits in society, only we ourselves can take the appropriate actions to make our body as healthy as possible.
Going for walks of only half an hour a day, eating more fruits and vegetables and avoiding alcohol and tobacco consumption are habits that, no matter how simple they may seem, help to avoid very serious and highly incapacitating illnesses. Abandoning a sedentary lifestyle does not mean having to exhaust yourself in the gym lifting heavy dumbbells for 4 hours a day, it is enough to distribute physical activities throughout the week to reach the 150 minutes per week that are considered adequate.
In addition, when one begins to play sports, this can become addictive to a certain point, making the habit more easily established than one might think at first. Along with this, if you are a smoker, exercising can have an unconscious impact on other aspects of life, reducing the desire to smoke and even starting to watch what you eat.
Bibliographic references
- World Health Organization (2010). Global Status Report on Noncommunicable Diseases 2010. Executive Summary. At https://www.who.int/nmh/publications/ncd_report_summary_es.pdf .
- U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2008). 2008 Physical Activity Guidelines for Americans. En https://health.gov/paguidelines/2008/pdf/paguide.pdf
- Vaamonde D., Da Silva-Grigoletto M. E., García-Manso J. M, Barrera N, Vaamonde-Lemos R. (2012). Physically active men show better semen parameters and hormone values than sedentary men. Eur J Appl Physiol 112(9). 3267-3673
To the classic question “what do you do?” I always answer “basically I am a psychologist”. In fact, my academic training has revolved around the psychology of development, education and community, a field of study influenced my volunteer activities, as well as my first work experiences in personal services.