Islamabad: Prolonged sitting such as watching TV and using the computer and other devices as well as reduced physical activity may increase the risk of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease that may potentially lead to liver failure and death, new research has found.
“We found that prolonged sitting time and decreased physical activity level was positively associated with the prevalence of NAFLD in a large sample of middle-aged Koreans,” said lead investigator Seungho Ryu from Sungkyunkwan University School of Medicine, Seoul, South Korea. The researchers studied records of nearly 140,000 Koreans who underwent a health examination between March 2011 and December 2013.
Detox and Cleanse Your Liver Naturally
Physical activity level and sitting time were assessed using the Korean version of the International Physical Activity Questionnaire Short Form. The presence of fatty liver was determined using ultrasonography — of the people studied, nearly 40,000 had NAFLD.
Importantly, researchers found that both prolonged sitting time and decreased physical activity levels were independently associated with the increasing prevalence of NAFLD. Remarkably, these associations were also observed in patients who were not obese.
“The message is clear, our chairs are slowly but surely killing us. Our body is designed to move and it is not surprising that sedentary behavior, characterized by low muscle activity, has a direct impact on physiology,” said Michael Trenell, professor of metabolism and lifestyle medicine at Newcastle University in England.
“With a dearth of approved drug therapies for NAFLD, lifestyle changes remain the cornerstone of clinical care,” Trenell noted. Their findings were published in the Journal of Hepatology.
What is fatty Liver?
Having a fatty liver is exactly what it sounds like: too much fat infiltrating your liver. If this is allowed to continue it can become serious. Until recently most cases were actually caused by heavy drinking, which is why your GP would have seemed surprised that you don’t drink more.
