Trends in prolonged sitting time among European adults: 27 country analysis.
OBJECTIVE
To examine trends in adult sitting time across 27 European countries.


METHODS
Data were from the Eurobarometer surveys collected in 2002, 2005, and 2013. Sitting time data were used to categorise respondents into 'low' (0 to 4h30min), 'middle' (4h31min to 7h30min), and 'high' levels of sitting (>7h30min). We modelled the likelihood of being in the high sitting group within a given country and overall across the three time points, controlling for age, gender, education, employment status, and physical activity.


RESULTS
In total 17 countries had sitting data at all three time points; among these countries the prevalence of 'high sitting' decreased steadily from 23.1% (95% CI=22.2-24.1) in 2002 to 21.8% (95% CI=20.8-22.8) in 2005, and 17.8% (95% CI=16.9-18.7) in 2013. A further 10 countries had data only over the latter two time points; among these countries the prevalence of high sitting decreased from 27.7% (95% CI=26.0-29.4) in 2005 to 19.0% (95% CI=17.6-20.5) in 2013.


CONCLUSIONS
Time spent in sedentary behaviour may not be increasing in the European region, and prolonged sitting may, in fact, be decreasing. This finding has important implications for the sedentary behaviour debate and the policy response.
British Heart Foundation Centre on Population Approaches for Non-Communicable Disease Prevention, Nuffield Department of Population Health, University of Oxford, New Richards Building, Old Road Campus, Headington, Oxford OX3 7LF, England, United Kingdom; Prevention Research Collaboration, School of Public Health, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2050, Australia. Electronic address: karen.milton@dph.ox.ac.uk.
Karen
K
Milton
Prevention Research Collaboration, School of Public Health, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2050, Australia. Electronic address: joanne.gale@sydney.edu.au.
Joanne
J
Gale
Exercise and Sport Sciences, Faculty of Health Sciences, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2050, Australia. Electronic address: emmanuel.stamatakis@sydney.edu.au.
Emmanuel
E
Stamatakis
Prevention Research Collaboration, School of Public Health, Charles Perkins Centre, University of Sydney, Camperdown, NSW 2050, Australia. Electronic address: adrian.bauman@sydney.edu.au.
Adrian
A
Bauman
D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005060:Europe; D015444:Exercise / Q000502:physiology; D005260:Female; D015438:Health Behavior; D006801:Humans; D008137:Longitudinal Studies; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D011187:Posture / Q000502:physiology; D015995:Prevalence; D057185:Sedentary Behavior; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D013997:Time Factors; D055815:Young Adult
Eurobarometer; Europe; Sedentary behaviour; Sitting time; Trends