Overview

• JAMA research finds that people over 60 who sit for 12 hours or more daily face a 63% higher risk of developing dementia compared to those sitting under ten hours.
• A US study in Alzheimer’s & Dementia tracked over 400 adults with an average age of 71 and found that average daily sitting of 13 hours was tied to poorer memory, slower information processing, and reduced volume in Alzheimer-vulnerable brain regions.
• Analysis of UK Biobank data reveals that individuals with shorter leukocyte telomeres have a 14% higher risk of dementia and a 28% greater risk of Alzheimer’s disease.
• Researchers determined that total sitting duration, rather than frequency of breaks, drives dementia risk and that even daily 30-minute exercise sessions may not offset the effects of prolonged sitting.
• Scientists call for further investigation into mechanisms such as reduced cerebral blood flow, metabolic changes, and inflammation to develop strategies for mitigating sitting-related dementia risk.