Background: This study aimed to investigate the relationship between daily sitting time and the risk of metabolic syndrome in Korean adolescents.
Methods: Data from 486 adolescents aged 12-18 years were obtained from national surveys. Daily sitting time was measured using questionnaires and divided into three intervals: <8 h; 8-12 h; and ≥12 h.
Results: The mean daily sitting time and prevalence of positive metabolic components were 620.9±9.9 min/day and 45.5±2.7%, respectively. In a multivariate logistic regression analysis, adolescents who sat longer were more likely to have metabolic components (p<0.05), independent of age, sex, area of residence, sleeping time and body mass index.
Conclusions: Longer daily sitting time appears to be associated with an increased risk of metabolic syndrome in adolescents. These findings highlight the need to focus on reducing sitting time for all adolescents, not just for those at risk of obesity.
Keywords: metabolic syndrome; sedentary lifestyle; self-report; sitting time; surveys and questionnaires.