你所不知道的久坐不起的諸多危害(圖)

You may hit the gym at lunchtime or go for a run when you get home. But such efforts will have minimAl effect if you spend the rest of your time doing what you are probably doing now - sitting down.

你或許在午休時會去健身房，或許下班後會去跑步。但如果其餘時間裏你都像現在這樣——久坐不動，那麼你的鍛鍊可能收效甚微。
In a glut of new research on the subject, experts are warning that we should 'beware our chair', as spending too long in it can raise the risk of high blood pressure, a sluggish metabolism and weight gain.

在最近大量的研究發現中，專家們警告大衆要“當心你的椅子”，因爲長時間“黏”在椅子上可能面臨患高血壓，代謝減緩和體重增加的風險。

With the average person sitting down for just under nine hours a day at the office, at home or in the car, even a daily workout is unlikely to offset the risks of being seated for too long.

一般人每天有近9小時的時間坐在辦公室、家中或者汽車上，即使每天堅持鍛鍊，也無法抵消久坐的危害。

Sit ups: Being chair-bound for too long can raise the risk of high blood pressure, a sluggish metabolism and weight gain

從椅子上站起來！久坐對身體的危害包括高血壓，代謝減緩和體重增加。

According to Swedish scientists, quoted in the British Journal of Sports Medicine recently, prolonged sitting should carry a public health warning.

《英國運動醫學雜誌》最近引述瑞典科學家的觀點，久坐不動已成爲威脅公衆健康的隱患，應當引起重視。

So why is the humble chair being blacklisted? As the most passive activity behind lying down, being seated burns a bare minimum of calories - even eating an apple or fidgeting uses more energy than parking your bottom on a chair.

但爲什麼這次是“老實巴交”的椅子被列入黑名單呢？作爲被動性僅次於躺的活動，“坐”的狀態將人體熱量消耗降至最低——吃一顆蘋果或“坐立不安”的扭來扭去，都比“黏”坐在椅子上消耗的熱量多。

While standing engages muscles in your back, shoulders and legs, sitting presents no positive physical challenge to the body, forcing it instead into an inactive state.

“站立”能鍛鍊背部，肩部和腿部的肌肉，而“坐”不但沒有對身體提出積極的體力考驗，反而強制它進入懈怠狀態。

It is almost inevitable, researchers say, that long-term sitters find their waistline expanding.

While the action of standing up only burns a few calories, do it enough times a day and it makes a real difference.

It's easy to burn 30 to 50 extra calories a day, which is enough to prevent a weight gain of 2lb to 3lb a year. Spend your time sitting down and the pounds will creep on unnoticed.

研究人員說，長期的“坐者”都不可避免的遭遇了腰圍增大的現實。雖然“站起來”一次只能消耗幾卡路里的熱量，但只要每天堅持做幾次，就能起到明顯的作用。每日多消耗30到50卡路里並不難，但足以防止體重每年增加2到3磅。如果大量時間都處於“坐”的狀態，體重就會悄悄的降臨到你身上。

On average, thin people stand for two hours longer every day than those who pile on the pounds.

The Swedish researchers found that the desk-bound and couch potatoes are much more likely to suffer weight-related health problems than those who move about regularly, even if it's just to get up to make a coffee.

平均而言，瘦子比不斷增重的胖子每天多站立2個小時。瑞典的研究人員發現，離不開辦公桌和愛坐沙發的人比常走動的人，更容易遭遇與體重相關的健康問題，哪怕這個“走動”只是起身去倒咖啡。

'Prolonged sitting really isn't good and yet a lot of people think they are more active than they actually are,' says Stuart Biddle, a professor in exercise psychology at Loughborough University, who is speaking on the adverse effects of 'the seated generation' at an international conference in August.

英國拉夫堡的大學運動心理學教授斯圖爾特•比德爾（Stuart Biddle） 說“長期坐着的確不好，雖然很多人都不覺得這是一種惰性，他們依然覺得自己很活躍。”他在8月份的一次國際會議上談到了“坐着的一代”引發的負面影響。

'People mistake the term for "sedentary" for meaning "no exercise", but if someone goes to the gym or walks for 30 to 45 minutes a day, but sits down the rest of the time, then they are still described as having a "sedentary lifestyle".'

“人們誤以爲‘久坐（Sedentary）’等同於‘不運動（no exercise）’，事實上如果有人每天在健身房鍛鍊30至45分鐘，其餘時間還是坐着，他們的生活方式仍屬於‘久坐’。”

Sedentary lifestyle: Sitting at a desk all day is bad for you - try to take frequent breaks or stand up as often as you can

久坐的生活方式：坐在桌前一整天對健康很不利，請嘗試儘可能的經常站起來休息。

It's not just weight gain that makes sitting down the latest health worry. Emerging research suggests something more sinister happens when we are inactive for too long at a time.

“久坐”不僅導致體重增加，而且成爲最新的健康隱患。研究表明，人體長時間不活動可能會發生比平時更危險的情況。

Studies on rats have shown that substances that are produced only when muscles are being used play a crucial role in metabolising fat and sugar.

These substances can be made just by standing up or moving around. When you sit down, an important part of your metabolism slows down.

'This can eventually lead to disorders like diabetes,' says Biddle. 'But the important thing to realise is that people who get up every half an hour or so are much less likely to have these effects.'

對老鼠的實驗發現，一些在脂肪和糖的代謝中起關鍵作用的物質，只在使用肌肉時產生。只需站起來或來回走動，身體就能產生這種物質。但一旦坐下，代謝過程就因缺少此重要物質而減緩。比德爾說：“最終有可能導致糖尿病等疾病，但每隔半小時從椅子上站起來一次，就會能有效降低風險。”

Regular movement is also important for preserving good posture. Sammy Margo, spokesperson for the Chartered Society of Physiotherapists, says that the human spine wasn't designed to spend long hours seated and that doing so can play havoc with posture, breathing and digestion.

經常運動對保持良好的體態也很重要。物理療法特許協會的發言人薩米•馬戈（Sammy Margo）說，人的脊椎不適合“久坐”，那樣會嚴重破壞正常的體態，損害呼吸和消化功能。

A healthy human spine has a natural S-shape, but sitting pushes the lower lumbar curve into more of a C-shape so that the back and abdominal muscles designed to support the body are unused.

Over time, the postural muscles become so weak that they are unable to support the spine effectively and back pain inevitably ensues.

健康人的脊柱呈自然的S形，但坐姿把腰部往後推成“C”形，使本該支持身體的背部和腹部肌肉失去了作用。長此以往，背部肌肉變弱變薄，它們無法有力的支持脊柱，疼痛不可避免地襲來。

'With your knees at a 90-degree angle when you sit, your hamstring muscles and hip flexors are permanently shortened and your buttock muscles stretched,' says Margo.

'This leads to muscles and joints tightening so much that your body moves less freely and is more prone to pain and injury.'

“坐着的時候，膝蓋呈90度彎曲，肌腱和髖部屈肌一直被壓縮，臀部肌肉被拉伸，”馬戈說，“這將導致肌肉和關節大幅收緊，長此以往，你的肢體動作變得不再自由和舒展，疼痛和受傷卻比原來更加頻繁。”

Breathing is also hampered, Margo says, as the body struggles to fill the lungs with oxygen when crunched in a seated position. Sitting also crunches the abdominal contents and digestion is slowed down as a result.

'All of this means energy levels can flag through lack of oxygen and sluggish digestion,' says Margo. 'Because your abdominal muscles are not being engaged when you sit, you will also lose tone in that area.

馬戈說，呼吸也受影響的原因是彎曲身體的坐姿給肺部輸送氧氣增加了困難。腹部也無法舒展，導致消化減緩。“所有這些都意味着在缺少氧氣和消化減緩的情況下，人的力量也會衰退，因爲當腹肌處於鬆懈狀態，就無法提供力量。”

'It's not good news and my advice is to stretch or go for a short walk as often as you can.'

“這不是好消息，我的建議是儘可能經常做一下伸展或一小段步行。 ”

There are other options for the permanently seated. Chairobics, or deskercise movements that can be performed discreetly as you sit, will prevent your muscles from remaining dormant.

其它可行的辦法包括可以坐着完成椅上運動和桌邊操，雖然做的時候需多加小心，但也能防止肌肉進入休眠狀態。

Meanwhile, the next big thing could be the office treadmill - already available in the U.S. - on which you walk as you work. But the next best thing is simply to stand up more often.

接下來的改變可能是辦公室專用跑步機（已在美國出現），讓你可以一邊幹活一邊步行。但當下最簡單易行的辦法是更加頻繁的站起來。

'Get into the habit of standing up when you are on the phone,' says Biddle. 'Naturally your body shifts its weight from foot to foot when you stand. You'll be burning calories as you talk.'

還有一個辦法是，“養成接電話時保持站立的習慣，”比德爾說，“並且通過換腳來不斷轉換重心。這樣你在接電話的過程中也消耗了卡路里。”