Sitting too much can hurt your health even if you exercise, according to a new study

Most older Americans understand that exercise reduces the likelihood of a long list of chronic diseases and conditions, including dementia. But a recent study has also linked sedentary behavior – the time you spend sitting – to an increased risk of cognitive decline and Alzheimer’s disease, regardless of how much you exercise. The risk appears to be greatest among individuals genetically predisposed to Alzheimer’s.

The study, which was published on May 13 in Alzheimer’s & Dementia, the Journal of the Alzheimer’s Association, followed a cohort of dementia-free older adults for seven years. It found that those who spent more time sitting experienced more vascular dysfunction, more neurodegenerative changes (as measured by brain MRIs) and worse cognitive function compared those who sat less. This was true even after researchers adjusted the data for physical activity levels.

Although increasing physical activity helped to mitigate some of the effects of sitting, it didn’t eliminate them, leading the researchers to conclude that sitting time is an independent risk factor for Alzheimer’s disease, separate from physical activity levels. That’s an important finding, considering that the average older adult sits for nine hours per day, according to the study.

While adding an hour of exercise for each hour you sit won’t fully offset sedentary health risks, the good news is that you probably do have some control over how much time you spend sitting. Even small movement breaks can make a difference, according to the Society of Behavioral Medicine. The key is taking an honest look at how long you sit, and being deliberate about decreasing that sitting time.

The Society recommends that you start by listing the activities you typically do while sitting. Then estimate how many hours you spend sitting each day. With those baselines established, you can identify ways to replace some of your sitting time with standing, stretching and walking.

For example:

Use a standing desk.
Set reminders to go off at regular intervals during longer periods of sitting.
Stand up during idle times at work and during leisure activities.
Make it a habit to stand up each time you complete a task, such as reading a chapter in a book or answering email or text messages.
Rather than passively watch TV, use the time to fold laundry and tackle other light household chores you can do while standing.
Stand up when you use your phone.

Even though sedentary behavior is a risk factor regardless of how much you exercise, it’s important to remember the vital role physical activity plays in protecting brain health. So if you’re working on reducing sitting time, it makes sense to also add some exercise where you can.

The Centers for Disease Control recommends 150 minutes of moderate-intensity exercise or 75 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise per week to get the most benefit from your workouts. But the effects are cumulative, so short spurts of activity count toward those goals. Using your standing breaks to knock out some of those minutes can help maximize the benefits you reap from reducing your sitting time and increase the net benefit to brain health.