Technology-Based Study Finds That Sedentary Lifestyle Is A Key Factor In Obesity

A U.S. study using accelerometry-based technology to validate a protocol for calculating energy expenditure found that obese Americans on average spend less than a minute a day on vigorous exercise, and 15 hours sleeping and sitting. The technology could prove to be an effective way to supplant the use of questionnaire data for estimating lifestyle factors, like exercise and diet, in research. The study of 1,272 men and 1,325 women found that obese particpants were significantly less physically active and spent more time in sedentary behaviors than their normal weight counterparts.