(Reuters) – people who spend much time sitting at a Desk or in front of the television are more likely to die than those who only spend a few hours a day, according to an Australian study that evaluated the mortality rates for a period of three years seated.

Researchers, whose results appeared in the Archives of Internal Medicine, found the relationship to be sitting too long and a shorter life even taking into account other factors such as the amount of moderate or vigorous exercise, as well as the weight and other health measures.

That suggests the alternation between the time it is granted and soft, such as walking to slow pace or active tasks physical activity, could have significant benefits in the long term, they added.

“When you give messages to people about how much physical activity should do, we need to talk about the idea of reducing the number of hours that pass daily sitting”, said Hidde van der Ploeg, lead author of the new study from the University of Sydney.

Of more than 200,000 adults over age 45 years, van der Ploeg and his colleagues found that people who claimed to spend at least 11 hours a day sitting had 40 percent more than likely to die during the study than those who sat less than four hours a day.

However, that no test sedentary lifestyle for himself to shorten life, he said, adding that there could be unlimited differences between people who spend too much or little time sitting every day.

The team surveyed some 220,000 people of new South Wales, Australia, between 2006 and 2008, including questions about the overall health of the participants and diseases that had, if they smoked and how much time passed both exercising as being seated a day.

Below, the research team followed the track of respondents using Australian records of mortality by an average of nearly three years, during which 5,400 – between two and three per cent – were killed.

Found that the extra risk of sitting stood independently of whether persons had a normal weight or overweight, of the amount of time they spent working and whether they were healthy or had health problems.

Van der Ploeg said that spending too much time sitting could affect metabolism by increasing fat in the blood and blood vessels and reducing the levels of “good” cholesterol.

“when you stand or walk, the muscles of the legs are constantly working helping to eliminate glucose and blood fat”, said. “If you’re sitting, this does not happen because the muscles are not active”.

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