‘Is sitting the new smoking?’: Apollo neurologist warns that your desk job could be killing you and suggests easy ways to fix it

If you spend most of your day glued to a chair, you might want to stand up — literally. Dr Sudhir Kumar, a CMC Vellore-trained neurologist from Apollo Hospital Hyderabad, recently issued a stark reminder that prolonged sitting can be as harmful as smoking. Citing research from the Mayo Clinic, he explained that people who sit for over eight hours a day with little to no physical activity face the same risk of dying as those who smoke or live with obesity.

Dr Kumar explained that sitting for long stretches drastically reduces energy use, leading to slower metabolism and a higher likelihood of developing serious health conditions. Extended periods of inactivity are strongly linked to obesity, elevated blood pressure, unhealthy cholesterol levels, and increased belly fat — all symptoms of metabolic syndrome. Even more worrying, research shows that spending too much time seated can raise the risk of death from heart disease and certain cancers.

According to findings from 13 large-scale studies involving over a million participants, people who remain sedentary for more than eight hours daily face alarmingly high mortality risks. However, the good news, as Dr Kumar pointed out, is that even 60 to 75 minutes of moderate aerobic activity a day — like brisk walking, cycling, or swimming — can completely offset the damage caused by excessive sitting.




For those with desk jobs, he recommends simple yet effective fixes: stand or stretch every 30 minutes, take walking meetings instead of conference-room ones, stand while talking on the phone, and consider using a high table or a treadmill desk. Dr Kumar summed it up with a clear message — less sitting, more movement. Even small steps through the day can add up to big improvements in health.