RT Journal
A1 Chakravarthy MV, Booth FW
T1 Inactivity and inaction: We can't afford either
JF Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
JO Archives of Pediatrics & Adolescent Medicine
YR 2003
FD August 1
VO 157
IS 8
SP 731
OP 732
DO 10.1001/archpedi.157.8.731
UL http://dx.doi.org/10.1001/archpedi.157.8.731
AB 
PHYSICAL INACTIVITY is epidemic. Approximately 70% of US adults and 50% of US youth (aged 12 to 21 years) are sedentary (ie, undertake <30 minutes of moderate-intensity physical activity per day as recommended by the US Surgeon General).1 A study by the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (Atlanta, Ga) found that 256 686 (14% of total) deaths in 1986 in the United States were a result of no regular exercise.2 Sedentary behavior is an independent risk factor for at least 35 chronic health conditions and increased mortality from these conditions.3 Patients with type 2 diabetes mellitus and obese individuals live about 7 years less than the average US lifespan. Thus, a major cause of mortality and morbidity in the United States is sedentary living. Given these facts, the term sedentary death syndrome categorizes the emerging entity of sedentary lifestyle–mediated disorders that ultimately result in increased mortality rates.