Is the office chair just another piece of furniture? Or has sitting become the new smoking? Of late there has been a lot of research done on the effects of sitting at your desk for long periods of time.

A 14-year study involving nearly 185,000 participants published in the American Journal of Epidemiology concluded that time spent sitting was independently associated with mortality. Perhaps most startling: This result was true regardless of the participants' physical activity levels. The risks of sitting have become clear enough that the Medical Journal of Australia published an article declaring that prolonged sitting at a desk may be "hazardous" and urging doctors and employers to prescribe or consider alternatives.

Sitting for long periods of time raises the risk of developing diabetes, experiencing a heart attack or developing certain types of cancer.

The science behind sitting

How many hours are spent sitting? We sit at our jobs, we sit in our cars and go to work, if travelling by public transport we clamber for any available seats, and we sit once we reach home while watching TV or while relaxing. Yes, the fact is we are sitting far longer than we need to! This is counter indicative to the human body; our bodies were not designed for long periods of sitting. We were made to walk, stand, run and be on the move.

Sitting in a slumped posture can weaken the muscles and ligaments over time. This causes a decrease in circulation resulting in spasms. Stress at the work place can also aggravate these spasms. Muscle tension affects the areas where the body is weakest. Sedentary lifestyles weaken the lower back muscles. When you sit, your muscles disengage, hips tighten and the spine becomes rigid. The blood flow becomes sluggish which can affect heart health and brain function due to the formation of clots. Sitting for extended periods of time causes sluggishness and reduces the effect of fat burning enzymes, stops burning calories and reduces the production of good (HDL) cholesterol by 20%.

The study, published in Annals of Internal Medicine found that the health hazards seem to be the greatest for people who sit 8 or 9 hours a day, and the impact was greater in people who did not exercise regularly. The findings also showed that sitting for prolonged periods of time raised the risk of cardiovascular disease by 14%, cancer by 13% and diabetes by 91%. Those who sat for long stretches and got no regular exercise had a 40% higher risk of early death. With regular exercise, the risk was smaller but still significant and around 10%.

How can I sit less?

Try and engage in a variety of movements. Keep an alarm to remind yourself to get up every half an hour.

• Stand when you are not involved with a task that needs typing. You could stand or walk while taking a phone call or while reviewing a document. Standing helps by burning calories. It also boosts energy, increases blood flow, tones muscles, improves posture and boosts metabolism.

• Walk over to the water filter and drink water or refill your bottle. This keeps you hydrated and gets you out of the chair.

• When you go home, sit on the floor while you play with your children or relax. This gets you away from cushioned chairs that can ruin your posture. Each time you stand and sit on the floor you increase flexibility and burn calories. It is also a good way of doing squats.

• Do Yoga at home as this improves posture and prevents joint pains caused due to sitting too long. A physiotherapist can also suggest flexing exercises that can be done at your desk to increase movement and improve posture.

• Get up from your desk and walk around office or climb 2 flights of stairs.