Abstract
BackgroundProlonged sitting is an emerging health risk. However, multi-country comparative sitting data are sparse. This paper reports the prevalence and correlates of sitting time in 32 European countries.MethodsData from the Eurobarometer 64.3 study were used, which included nationally representative samples (n = 304-1,102) from 32 European countries. Face-to-face interviews were conducted during November and December 2005. Usual weekday sitting time was assessed using the International Physical Activity Questionnaire (short-version). Sitting time was compared by country, age, gender, years of education, general health status, usual activity and physical activity. Multivariable-adjusted analyses assessed the odds of belonging to the highest sitting quartile.ResultsData were available for 27,637 adults aged 15–98 years. Overall, mean reported weekday sitting time was 309 min/day (SD 184 min/day). There was a broad geographical pattern and some of the lowest amounts of daily sitting were reported in southern (Malta and Portugal means 194–236 min/day) and eastern (Romania and Hungary means 191–276 min/day) European countries; and some of the highest amounts of daily sitting were reported in northern European countries (Germany, Benelux and Scandinavian countries; means 407–335 min/day). Multivariable-adjusted analyses showed adults with low physical activity levels (OR = 5.10, CI95 = 4.60-5.66), those with high sitting in their main daily activity (OR = 2.99, CI95 = 2.74-3.25), those with a bad/very bad general health state (OR = 1.87, CI95 = 1.63-2.15) and higher education levels (OR = 1.48, CI95 = 1.38-1.59) were more likely to be in the highest quartile of daily sitting time. Adults within Greece (OR = 2.91, CI95 = 2.51-3.36) and Netherlands (OR = 2.56, CI95 = 2.22-2.94) were most likely to be in the highest quartile. High-sit/low-active participants comprised 10.1% of the sample. Adults self-reporting bad/very bad general health state (OR = 4.74, CI95 = 3.97-5.65), those within high sitting in their main daily activities (OR = 2.87, CI95 = 2.52-3.26) and adults aged ≥65 years (OR = 1.53, CI95 = 1.19-1.96) and were more likely to be in the high-sit/low-active group.ConclusionsWeekday sitting time and its demographic correlates varied considerably across European countries, with adults in north-western European countries sitting the most. Sitting is prevalent across Europe and merits attention by preventive interventions.
Highlights
Prolonged sitting is an emerging health risk
We examined the distribution of sitting time across sociodemographic factors and countries among specific subgroups at the highest/lowest risk based on physical activity and sitting time
For the sitting time question, data were missing for 1,556 participants (5.3% of total sample) and, the analyses included 27,637 participants
Summary
Sedentary behaviour (too much sitting as opposed to too little exercise) has recently emerged as a candidate independent risk factor associated with several detrimental health outcomes [1,2]. The lack of population studies assessing sitting time was recently highlighted by the recent Lancet Series on physical activity [26]. One of the potential reasons for the insufficient population data on sitting time may be that it has been considered as a chronic disease risk factor for less than a decade [27]. The International Physical Activity Questionnaire (IPAQ) assesses self-reported sitting time. The IPAQ has two versions, a long and short version, and each have recently been used in several largescale multi-country physical activity surveillance studies [28,31,32]
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