Don’t just sit there – fiddle!

If you are one of those women who sit for long hours at your desk, then you can protect your health against its ill effects by fidgeting.

The reason? Science, my good man. We’ve all heard what they say about sitting down: “Sitting down for hours a day will kill you”.

Although the researchers admitted that more studies have to be conducted regarding this topic, their findings already clearly show the impact of small movements in people’s overall health.

The UK Women’s Cohort Study used by Cade and her colleagues contain information on a wide range of eating patterns of more than 35,000 women aged 35 to 69 who are living in the UK.

This conclusion, according to the researchers, is the first time a study has made an association between fidgeting, sitting duration and death rates. All this data had been originally filled in between the years of 1999 and 2000. The researchers found that the risk of mortality of women, who sat for over 7 hours a day and didn’t fidget regularly, was 43% more than the ones who sat for less than 5 hours.

Sure, some have tried other techniques, like standing desks, treadmill work stations, frequent walks around the office, but most people don’t have those options.

Staying still for long periods of time is bad for you but a study has found that fidgeting while sitting may aid in offsetting some of the bad effects of a sedentary lifestyle.

Of course you can’t really train people to fidget more. Regularly going to the gym or joining a sports team should still be your main source of physical activity.

Cade divided the women into three groups, namely low, middle and high fidgeters. However, the ladies who considered themselves “moderately or very fidgety” had no increased risk of mortality.

NHS expert in sports and exercise medicine, Wilby Williamson, explains that reducing our sitting time improves our ability to break down sugar and fat, which can help to reduce our risk of metabolic diseases such as diabetes and cardiovascular disease.

So I guess the message here is if you’re not moving, maybe it’s time to tap out a tune with that leg of yours while you sit all day.

Firstly, the study confirmed what is now common knowledge: sitting all day is quite detrimental to your health.