Does your current job require long hours of sitting at the desk?  Make sure that you get on your feet every two hours and walk around in order to facilitate blood circulation in your legs, which is an essential cardiovascular feature for good health.  A recent study published in the Clinical Journal of Sport Medicine showed that continuous sitting is not only a risk for obesity and prevents one to lose weight, but also endangers a person to develop a pulmonary embolism.

Losing Weight for Good Health

Good health is strongly associated with a leading a healthy lifestyle, including eating a well-balanced diet and actively participating in routine exercise programs to lose weight.  A nutritious meal for good health consists of proteins, carbohydrates, fruits, and vegetables.  In addition, the inclusion of fiber-rich food items such as nuts, fruits, and vegetables are also helpful when one wants to lose weight.  Fruits and vegetables are also rich in polyphenols, which are plant-derived chemical compounds that promote good health.

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Effects of Obesity

The results of a recent study showed that women who were found to be leading a sedentary type of life and were thus least likely to lose weight, sitting for more than 10 hours each day either at work or a home.  Obesity, per se, did not directly result in an increased risk for developing a pulmonary embolism, but coupling obesity with sitting for extended periods of time increased the chances for this cardiovascular event.  For female nurses with obesity or attempting to lose weight and were moving most of the time at work or at home, no significant association was observed with the occurrence of a pulmonary embolism.

Pulmonary embolism is characterized by a blood clot that originates from a specific part of the body, such as the blood vessels in the legs, and travels toward the heart and lungs, blocking a major blood vessel and resulting in medical distress.  For a person with good health, a pulmonary embolism is least likely to occur because this individual usually engages with regular physical exercise, consumes a well-balanced diet on a daily basis, and does not have issues with obesity.  On the other hand, a person who is struggling with obesity will more likely spend several hours each day sitting, thus decreasing the opportunity to lose weight through regular physical exercises.  It could also be possible that the nature of a specific job requires hours of sitting in front of a computer and thus participating in physical activities to lose weight to achieve good health will require extra effort on the part of the individual.

Another interesting result observed by the recent study was that age did not influence the risk for developing a pulmonary embolism during extended periods of sitting.  It has been a common notion that good health is usually observed among younger individuals and as a person gets older, one’s good health deteriorates.  The study showed that a pulmonary embolism might develop at any age by simply coupling of two conditions, namely obesity and sitting for long periods of time.  It is thus important to take breaks at work and possibly walk around the workplace in order to maintain blood circulation, especially in the legs, and to possibly lose weight, thus maintaining good health.  The best recommendation for prevention of a pulmonary embolism would still be to conquer obesity and to lose weight, thus ultimately achieving good health.