Is “Sitting the New Smoking?”

“Sitting is the new smoking” was a phrase that spread like wildfire about a decade ago. A study showed that individuals who sit the majority of their day are more at risk for heart disease, diabetes and other chronic conditions as compared to those who are more active. However, this phrase and study can be misleading as this risk imposed by sitting is NOWHERE near the increased risk of having these conditions by smoking.

Personally, have I used this phrase, yes. Just to communicate the importance of being active, proper posture, and for ergonomic purposes. I do think it is very misleading, as smoking poses much more serious health risks. But I also think it is a very important statement. Sitting long periods is one of the primary cause-effect relationships that people seek physical therapy. I can attribute over half of my patient schedule TODAY who are coming to therapy for pain that increases or is caused by sitting. So why?!

Let’s start from the top, down. Because why not!?!

Headaches. So many people seek care for headaches. Myself included. So many things contribute to a headache: vascular, muscular, ocular, substance withdraw (momma needs her Starbucks), blood glucose levels, sinuses, cervical spine, hormone changes, migraines, and multi-focal (you know, just to name a few). We humans have some many contributing factors that sometimes it isn’t just one.

Neck pain. Is it muscular, is it the spine? Is it weak, is it tight? Is it nerve pain, is it joint restrictions? Is it postural, is it anatomical? Is is chronic, is it acute? Is it degenerative, or is it a traumatic injury? I mean....is it just staring at your computer all day or is it the fact your stress. Keeps. Coming. On.

Upper back pain. That constant burn stabbing you in the shoulder blades, because I mean, as if you didn’t already have enough things to worry about.

What about that ticker? You know, your heart. That sitting for 8 hours or on the couch, at a desk, or in a recliner that it just never gets challenged in a way that allows it to stay in shape.

Those lungs. Trapped below a now tight chest cavity and rounded thoracic spine, unable to go to full expansion.

Your shoulders. Compromised in the forward position, putting your scapular muscles on chronic stretch, pec muscles in prolonged shortening, all while impinging on those beloved rotator cuff muscles, making them more prone to weakening and tears.

Your gut. Walking alone is enough movement to stimulate better bowel function. Feeling constipated or bloated a lot? It could be from sitting still for so long.

Your lower back. Where to begin. Sitting is more compression on your lumbar discs than standing. So imaging doing that. All. Day. Long. Not to mention your stabilizing muscles take the day off, making this combo dangerous for disc herniations and degeneration.

Hip flexors get tight. And weak. Imagine that. This then can contribute to increasing the curve in your low back. Which guess what, contributes to increase degeneration and injuries. Compression on your glute tissue can also compress on important structures such as your sciatic nerve. That’s quite a pain in the butt.

Your knees don’t benefit from activity, getting weaker by the day. And same for the ankles. Unfortunately, they have to pick up any slack coming from weaknesses and dysfunctions already created from above.

Did we convince you yet!?

So IS sitting the new smoking? Maybe, depends how you look at it. Everyone knows that smoking is bad for you, but some choose to do it anyways. So why don’t we feel the same about sitting? Newton's first law of motion is often stated as “An object at rest stays at rest and an object in motion stays in motion.... unless acted upon.”

So ladies, get into action and stop sitting so dang much.