Prevalence and correlates of excessive sitting among women in an Indian population

Abstract

Background Excessive sitting is understood to have deleterious health outcomes among individuals. The predictors of excessive sitting in India and Kerala are less explored. We aimed to identify the prevalence and correlates of excessive sitting among women in Kasaragod district, Kerala. Methods A cross-sectional study was conducted among 3063 women aged 30-60 years, with waist circumference ≥80 cm and a random blood glucose of >110 mg/dl. The sitting time was captured by the Global Physical Activity Questionnaire (GPAQ). Sitting time was categorized into four categories: of <4 hours, 4–5 hours, 6–7 hours and ≥8 hours. Excessive sitting was considered as sitting for 6 hours or more per day. Binary logistic regression analysis was done to identify the predictors of excessive sitting. Results The prevalence of sitting durations of <4 hours, 4-5 hours, 6-7 hours and >=8 hours were 73.5% 21.1%, 4.7%, 0.7% respectively. The prevalence of excessive sitting (≥ 6 hours) was 5.4%. The mean sitting time was 3.97 ± 2.3 hours. The factors associated with excessive sitting were: not belonging to the disadvantaged social group (OR: 1.88, 95% CI- 1.19, 2.98, p value= 0.007), being unemployed (OR: 1.79, 95% CI- 1.25, 2.58, p value= 0.002), having adequate physical activity (OR: 4.00, 95% CI- 2.51, 6.38, p value= <0.001), having depression (OR: 2.04, 95% CI- 1.45, 2.87, p value= <0.001) and not having stress (OR: 1.49, 95% CI- 1.06, 2.08, p value= 0.02). Conclusions These findings substantiate the risk factors associated with excessive sitting time. To mitigate this, interventions should focus on women who does not belong to the disadvantaged social group, being unemployed, those engaging in adequate physical activity, having depression and not having stress.