Most Americans an hour more a day sitting than they used to a decade ago, a new study says.
Researchers found sitting time for adults rose from 5.5 hours per day to almost 6.5 hours and teenagers' sitting time increased from seven hours per day to more than eight.
They also found that a quarter of Americans spent at least three hours a day lounging in front of a computer outside of school or work.
Previous studies have found that sitting too long increased the risk of obesity, heart disease, diabetes and even certain cancers.
The team, from Washington University School of Medicine in St Louis, Missouri, says its study is among the first to place specific numbers on how much time Americans actually spend sedentary and what activities they're doing.
A new study from Washington University School of Medicine found sitting time for adults rose from 5.5 hours per day to almost 6.5 hours and, for teenagers, it rose from seven hours to eight hours (file image)
In 2018, the Department of Health and Human Services released revised physical activity guidelines and recommended less time sitting - but did not specify how much less.
For the study, published in the Journal of the American Medical Association, the team looked at data from more than 51,000 people who took part in the National Health and Nutrition Examination Survey between 2001 and 2016.
The survey, run by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, assesses the health and nutritional status of children and adults in the US.
Researchers found that total sitting time increased from 2007 to 2016 among teenagers (ages 12 to 19) and adults.
Teenagers' sitting time increased from seven hours per day to more than eight hours, and adults'
