Sedentary Lifestyles and Their Health Consequences

Can one's body truly become so massive that a crane or bulldozer is needed to shift from place to place? Surprisingly, yes. But this extraordinary condition arises from a combination of two key factors: a sedentary lifestyle and excessive eating. Obesity doesn't appear overnight; it gradually takes shape over time. Instances of individuals who've fallen into this predicament due to inactivity and overconsumption are well-documented and notable cases include Paul Mason, Carol Yager (whose life was cut short due to multiple organ failures stemming from extended edema), and Manuel Uribe (whose demise was linked to obesity, heart ailments, and liver damage).

So many people do not perform any form of exercise coupled with the fact that the type of job they do is one that requires them to stay indoors or not move all day. It can be so fun when you just sit at home, work, then watch the TV, and place orders for whatever you want to eat but you see, this type of lifestyle can come with different challenges, and being overweight is one of them. What you eat and your body's metabolism matters a lot and contributes to this weight gain.

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The human body, in motion, functions like a well-oiled machine with the mitochondria, acting as powerhouses, consistently burning energy. This efficient energy consumption is reduced to a mere flicker when a sedentary lifestyle is embraced. The appetite-regulating duo hormone, ghrelin, and leptin, keep the sensations of hunger in check, irrespective of whether one is physically active or not.

When a person stops performing physical activities, thereby not exercising the skeletal muscles, blood to those muscles is reduced and the muscles begin to weaken but with exercise, this is completely different as the muscles receive more blood because it requires more oxygen during movement. With a lack of movement, over time the bones in the body begin to weaken, and the bone marrow density will reduce. With this, a person who isn't moving will suffer from weakened bones and increased weight with reduced muscle activity.

The heart, too, begins to recount a different story. Arteries start accumulating fatty deposits that can eventually obstruct blood flow This might look like a simple thing but you must have seen it even in adverts for cooking oil when each of them says their oil doesn't have cholesterol and would not cause any heart problems but personally, I still find it hard to believe them because most times, marketing just has to do its job. When the heart stops receiving blood properly and pumping it out adequately, as a result of the fatty plaques in it, it could lead to heart issues. This can also become worse if the fatty plaques begin to block blood flow to the brain, as it would lead to stroke.

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Once a person starts to live a sedentary lifestyle without proper exercise or movement of the body from time to time, then it could lead to heart disease and diabetes. Lack of movement will cause the body not to produce sufficient lipoprotein lipase which is an enzyme that breaks down fat in the blood and this can be the cause of increased lipid partitioning to other tissues, as well as insulin resistance, and obesity.

Over time, a person that enjoys a sedentary lifestyle will lead to a decrease in brain-derived neurotrophic factor which is responsible for the growth of neurons in the brain and this will begin to gradually affect learning and memory. Not to scare you, but a study also showed that prolonged sitting can lead to higher chances of developing clots in the lungs (pulmonary embolism).

The alarming progression from inactivity to severe obesity underscores the importance of maintaining an active lifestyle although the majority of all our jobs and activities are targeted towards allowing us to have a sedentary lifestyle. Hopefully, we begin to look at maintaining an active lifestyle daily.

^REFERNCE

^{https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK26894/
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https://www.cdc.gov/nccdphp/sgr/pdf/chap3.pdf
https://www.cdc.gov/chronicdisease/resources/publications/factsheets/physical-activity.htm
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC2343229/
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC7741630/
https://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2011/07/110705071745.htm}