RESEARCHERS AT THE University of Limerick (UL) have been granted funding to continue research into the effect long periods of lying down has on our heart health.

A 2011 study by the university found that teenager girls lie down or sit for up to 19 hours a day, including long bouts of inactivity during school time.

Researches suggested that although they might be doing enough exercise, “if you sit for the rest of the day, it will still have health consequences”.

“There is no doubt that performing moderate or vigorous physical activity is good for the long term health of adolescents,” Professor Alan Donnelly from the Centre for Physical Activity and Health Research said.

However, we believe that long periods of sitting might be a separate risk factor in this group.

The Irish Heart Foundation has now granted funding for the group to examine the potential effects of sitting and light physical activities have on our heart health.

Donnelly explained that this new research will track 100 males and females through adolescence to early adulthood “to observe whether sitting behaviour and the associated risk from sitting are modified when adolescents leave school and go to college or into the workplace”.

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