Do you spend a lot of time sitting in front of the TV, the computer or the tablet? A team of scientists led by the University of Calgary (Canada) has concluded that people under 60 years of age with little physical activity (who spend more than eight hours a day reading, playing board games, watching television or on the computer) have up to seven times the risk of stroke than the most physically active people.
In fact, the figures suggest that death from stroke appears to be increasing among younger adults, ages 35 to 64, increasing from 14.7 per 100,000 adults in 2010 to 15.4 per 100,000 in 2016, according to the statistics from the American Heart Association.
Previous research suggested that the more time adults spend in sedentary activities, the greater their risk of cardiovascular disease, including stroke. Let’s not forget that a stroke can cause premature death or significantly affect function and quality of life.
For this study, the researchers monitored the health and lifestyle of 143,000 adults, for an average of 9.4 years each, who had participated in the Canadian Community Health Survey. No participant had a history of cancer, heart disease, or stroke.
Based on the amount of time each spent in sedentary leisure activities, the team divided the subjects into four groups. Depending on their daily level of physical activity (being the least active, those who walked 10 minutes), they were also distributed into four groups.
The researchers found that, in the entire study, 2,965 strokes occurred, 90% of them were ischemic strokes, which occur when a vessel supplying blood to the brain becomes blocked. On average, the subjects dedicated 4.08 hours a day to sedentary leisure activities.
Experts found that adults aged 60 and younger who exhibited low levels of physical activity and spent eight or more hours a day in sedentary leisure activities had a 4.2 times higher risk of stroke than those who only spent four hours in those hobbies. The most inactive group had a seven times higher risk of stroke than those who exercised more and only spent four hours in sedentary activities.
“Physical activity has a very important role since it reduces the real time of sedentary lifestyle and also seems to reduce the negative impact of excess sedentary lifestyle. Physician recommendations and public health policies should emphasize greater physical activity and less sedentary time among young adults in combination with other healthy habits to reduce the risks of cardiovascular events and strokes, “the researchers explain in their study published in the journal Stroke.
Referencia: Raed A. Joundi, Scott B. Patten, Jeanne V.A. Williams, Eric E. Smith. Association Between Excess Leisure Sedentary Time and Risk of Stroke in Young Individuals. Stroke, 2021; DOI: 10.1161/STROKEAHA.121.034985
