Television Watching and Other Sedentary Behaviors in Relation to Risk of Obesity and Type 2 Diabetes Mellitus in Women

Abstract

Current public health campaigns to reduce obesity and type 2 diabetes have largely focused on increasing exercise levels, but have paid little attention to the reduction of sedentary behaviors. Television (TV) watching is a major sedentary behavior in the United States. In a survey conducted in 1997, an adult male spent approximately 29 hours per week watching TV, and an adult female spent 34 hours per week.¹ In recent decades, in parallel with increasing obesity, there has been a steady increase in the number of homes with multiple TV sets, videocassette recorders (VCRs), cable TV, and remote controls, as well as the number of hours spent watching TV.¹