SA men loll around as women work – study

South African men have had their butts kicked over the amount of time they spend sitting on them.

Scientists who analysed sedentary behaviour in SA and five other low- and middle-income countries say South African men are five times more likely than women to spend eight hours or more on their backsides every day.

The other countries in the study, led by Ai Koyanagi from the University of Barcelona, were China, Ghana, India, Mexico and Russia.

In the latest PLOS One, the paper reads: “It might be that, particularly in more rural areas, women are more responsible for the livelihood of the family.”

Other findings include:

● SA and Mexico had a high proportion of obese individuals and people with low levels of physical activity;

● SA was the only country where low BMI was linked with high sedentary behaviour. The researchers said: “Low body weight may be an indicator of malnourishment or ... health problems such as HIV;” and

● The link between sedentary behaviour and urban settings was particularly strong in SA and Mexico.

Data came from more than 42,000 people who took part in the WHO study on global ageing and adult health between 2007 and 2010.

One in 12 spent more than eight waking hours a day sitting or reclining, although in SA it was only one in 22.

“Sedentary behaviour has been associated with physical health conditions including obesity, type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease ... and overall premature mortality,” said Koyanagi, adding it was also linked to depression and anxiety.

Two of the key factors behind sedentary behaviour were unemployment and urbanisation.

But it was unclear if sitting too much caused ill health or the other way round.