Studies Lots of sitting promotes fatty liver

A study from South Korea shows that prolonged sitting increases the risk of fatty liver disease, regardless of whether or not they exercise.
Korean researchers have investigated whether prolonged sitting, regardless of activity level, plays a role in the development of non-alcoholic fatty liver disease (NAFLD).

To do so, they evaluated the health data of 139,056 Koreans, who averaged 7.6 hours a day. Those who actively exercised had a 20% reduced risk of developing fatty liver disease. Long sitting also proved to be an independent risk factor for NAFLD.

Much sitting can cause the liver to become fat. Image: Peter Hermes Furian - fotolia

Subjects sitting for five to nine hours a day had a 4% higher NAFLD risk than subjects sitting less than five hours daily. With 10 hours of sedentary activity per day, the risk was 9 percent higher. It also did not help if these people were physically active or the BMI was less than 23 kg / m2.

The authors suggest that the relationship between muscle and fat mass could play a role here. The study can be found here. (Pm)