Your TV habit might be killing you

But as you get comfy on your sofa, you might want to consider this: Your TV habit might be killing you. A growing body of evidence links not just sitting in general but TV viewing in particular with all sorts of health problems. Those include obesity, Type 2 diabetes, heart disease and, yes, premature death.

Too much TV “is a really serious health hazard,” says Frank Hu, a professor of nutrition and epidemiology at Harvard University. For example:

– In a review of eight studies by Hu and colleagues, each two-hour increase in daily TV viewing was associated with a 20% increased risk of Type 2 diabetes, a 13% increased risk of cardiovascular disease and a 13% increased risk of death from any cause – translating to 104 extra deaths each year for every 100,000 people.