Fidgeting is good for your health?

Finally, there’s an excuse to fidget in your chair, as a new study says it could counteract the adverse health consequences of prolonged sitting.

It might seem like a joke, but the research found an increased risk of mortality from prolonged sitting for those who rarely fidget from their workstation.

“While further research is needed, the findings raise questions about whether the negative associations with fidgeting, such as rudeness or lack of concentration, should persist if such simple movements are beneficial for our health,” says co-author professor Janet Cade of the University of Leeds, UK.

Even those who meet recommended exercise quotients and who sleep for eight hours per night can easily spend up to 15 hours sitting. While walking has already been proven to improve health, this study is believed to be the first to explore fidgeting in relation to sitting time and death rates. The research team worked with data from women aged 35 to 69. The researchers analysed data from a follow-up survey sent to these respondents, asking them about their lifestyle, including diet and exercise, and whether they had any chronic diseases and, of course, about how often they fidgeted. The researchers, whose study was published online in the American Journal of Preventative Medicine, acknowledge that more work is in order to identify the exact mechanisms involved.