Prolonged Sitting Associated with Colon Polyps and Cancer

by: Dr. Gabe Mirkin, M.D.

Image from Murrasaca

Researchers followed more than 1,700 men and women who had had one or more colorectal polyps removed and found that men who sit down (watching television, using a computer, writing or reading) for 11 or more hours a day are 45 percent more likely to develop recurrent polyps in their colons than those who spend fewer than seven hours a day sitting (Annual meeting of the American Association for Cancer Research in Oxon Hill, MD. October 28, 2013).

This means that more than 170,000 cases of colon cancer may be caused by sitting each year. The average American sits for 15.5 hours each day.

Even people who exercise regularly may not be protected from the effects of sitting too long. Men who spent a lot of time sitting and also very little time exercising had a 41 percent greater risk for polyps than men who sat long hours but also exercised.

Polyps are benign tumors in your colon that can become malignant. Having just one polyp increases risk for colon cancer so much that people who have had polyps need to be checked every few years throughout their lives. Not having any polyps on a colonoscopy markedly reduces your chances for developing colon cancer. Benign polyps can be removed easily at the time of a colonoscopy.