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Couch Potatoes May Have Shorter Lives
LiveScience.com ^ | 1/11/10 | Rachael Rettner

Posted on 01/11/2010 6:15:22 PM PST by NormsRevenge

Lounging in front of the tube not only eats up hours in your day, it may also shorten your life, according to a new study.

The study, which looked at the connection between watching TV and death for 8,800 Australian adults, found that each hour of TV-viewing was associated with an 11 percent increased risk of death from any cause, and an 18 percent increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease. These findings held true even after the researchers took into account other factors that could raise the risk of dying, such as age, gender, waist circumference and exercise habits.

While the study included only Australians, the findings likely apply to Americans, who spend even more time watching TV, the researchers said. The results could also apply to any sedentary activity - yes including sitting in front of a computer all day - not just TV-watching. And skinny people could be victims as well, the researchers say.

The researchers suggest this link between TV-time and early death could be partly due to the fact that sitting in front of the tube may take away from time a person might otherwise spend moving about, engaging in light activity, which has been shown to reduce the risk of developing certain biological indicators of cardiovascular disease. ..

The results also showed that those who watched TV for four hours a day or more had a 46 percent increased risk of death from any cause and an 80 percent increased risk of death from cardiovascular disease, compared with those who watched TV less than two hours a day. This connection was found to be independent of other risk factors for death and cardiovascular disease, including smoking, high cholesterol, poor diet, high blood pressure and a large waistline.

(Excerpt) Read more at news.yahoo.com ...


TOPICS: Culture/Society; Miscellaneous; Your Opinion/Questions
KEYWORDS: couch; exercise; health; lives; longevity; potatoes; shorter
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To: NormsRevenge

There’s no time for us
There’s no place for us
What is this thing that builds our dreams yet slips away from us

Who wants to live forever
Who wants to live forever....?

There’s no chance for us
It’s all decided for us
This world has only one sweet moment set aside for us

Who wants to live forever
Who wants to live forever?

Who dares to love forever?
When love must die

But touch my tears with your lips
Touch my world with your fingertips
And we can have forever
And we can love forever
Forever is our today
Who wants to live forever
Who wants to live forever?
Forever is our today
Who waits forever anyway?


21 posted on 01/11/2010 6:46:21 PM PST by seowulf (Petraeus, cross the Rubicon.)
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To: NormsRevenge
Eat Healthy!

Stay Fit!

Die Anyway.

22 posted on 01/11/2010 6:47:24 PM PST by Nik Naym (Palin. Got that? Palin. <---Right there is your answer!)
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To: NormsRevenge

In the 18th century nobody watched TV, but everyone born in the 18th century is now dead. That’s a death rate of 100%. During the last 65 years, despite the increasing prevalence of TV-watching, the death rate has never increased beyond 100%.


23 posted on 01/11/2010 6:54:12 PM PST by Verginius Rufus
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To: Marylander

We are not supposed to ask. It proves we can think. That’s frowned upon.


24 posted on 01/11/2010 6:55:19 PM PST by brytlea (Jesus loves me, this I know.)
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To: brytlea

Exactly. An inclination to spend many hours lounging in front of the TV may well be a symptom of underlying problems (e.g. depression) that are more directly causative of earlier death, and would be even if the person never watched TV at all.


25 posted on 01/11/2010 6:56:31 PM PST by GovernmentShrinker
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To: CaptainK

See the third paragraph. :)


26 posted on 01/11/2010 6:57:12 PM PST by BunnySlippers (I LOVE BULL MARKETS . . .)
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To: Verginius Rufus

It’s all in how ya look at stats, I reckun. Good point. ;-)


27 posted on 01/11/2010 6:57:48 PM PST by NormsRevenge (Semper Fi ... Godspeed .. Monthly Donor Onboard .. May yur bandwidth exceed your girth)
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To: NormsRevenge
"Couch Potatoes May Have Shorter Lives"

No way! It can't be! I'll have to whittle on a stick here or watch some tellyvision while ponderin' that. ...maybe loosen the gallusses on my overhauls.


28 posted on 01/11/2010 6:58:18 PM PST by familyop (cbt. engr. (cbt), NG, '89-' 96, Duncan Hunter or no-vote.)
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To: NormsRevenge

My brothers father-in-law has been a lazy, non-working couch bum nearly all of his life—literally. And yet he is pushing 90. Personally I would rather be productive and check out earlier IMHO.


29 posted on 01/11/2010 7:32:56 PM PST by tflabo
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To: CaptainK

Sounds like your good to go to a ripe age. -)


30 posted on 01/11/2010 8:09:12 PM PST by mcshot (Son of Liberty.)
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To: Marylander

Very True. Case in point: couched by case of late stage Lyme.


31 posted on 01/11/2010 8:12:10 PM PST by mcshot (Son of Liberty.)
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To: BunnySlippers

That’s what happens when you skim an article. Thanks.


32 posted on 01/12/2010 12:59:56 AM PST by CaptainK (...please make it stop. Shake a can of pennies at it.)
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To: mcshot

Ooh ... that bug is a sonofagun. I hope you are getting good treatment and responding well.


33 posted on 01/12/2010 9:57:56 AM PST by Marylander (Obama is a pill ... and a pain.)
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