BBC – In 1953, epidemiologist Jeremy Morris found that London bus drivers were more than twice as likely as bus conductors to develop coronary heart disease.
Demographically (in age, sex and income range) the two groups of workers were the same, so why was there such a significant difference?
Morris’ answer: bus conductors were required to be on their feet and regularly climb the steps of London’s iconic double-decker buses as they sold tickets to passengers, whereas the drivers remained seated for long stretches of time.
His landmark study laid the groundwork for research on the links between physical activity and coronary health.
Whilst London bus conductors may now be a thing of the past, Morris’ results are more relevant than ever. Since the Covid-19 pandemic, there has been a huge shift towards working from home, which is likely to increase our collective sitting time.
Without the trips to the water cooler and trot from meeting room to meeting room, it’s easy to spend hours sat behind a desk without getting up.
(Office culture, however, had already changed our working lives so much by the 1980s that some researchers joked that our species had become Homo sedens – the “seated man” – rather than Homo sapiens.)
Prolonged sitting is a form of sedentary behaviour, characterised by a highly reduced energy expenditure in a seated or reclined position. Typical sedentary behaviours including television-watching, gaming, driving and desk-bound work.
Sedentary behaviours are associated with a higher risk of cardiovascular disease, type 2 diabetes and premature mortality, and the time we spend sitting down in particular has been identified as an independent risk factor in a range of health conditions.
In 2020, the World Health Organization suggested measures to reduce sedentary behaviour …
