And staying seated for a few minutes to view it is probably okay.

雖然坐個幾分鐘應該是無傷大雅的。

But the longer you stay put, the more agitated your body becomes.

但隨著時間的拉長，你的身體可能會開始感到坐立難耐。

It sits there counting down the moments until you stand up again and take it for a walk.

這感覺會持續到你再次站起來，並到處走動為止。

That may sound ridiculous.

這說法聽起來可能很荒唐。

Our bodies love to sit, right?

我們的身體不是喜歡坐著嗎？

Not really.

其實不然。

Sure, sitting for brief periods can help us recover from stress or recuperate from exercise.

坐著一小段時間當然可以幫助我們紓緩壓力或是幫助我們在運動後回復。

But nowadays, our lifestyles make us sit much more than we move around, and our bodies simply aren't built for such a sedentary existence.

但如今，我們的生活方式使得我們坐著的時間比活動多上許多，但我們的身體並不是針對久坐不動而設計的。

In fact, just the opposite is true.

事實上是好相反。

The human body is built to move, and you can see evidence of that in the way it's structured.

人類的身體是為了移動所打造的，而你可以從身體的組成方式一窺究竟。

Inside us are over 360 joints, and about 700 skeletal muscles that enable easy, fluid motion.

我們體內有超過 360 個關節及約 700 個骨骼肌，使得我們能夠簡單、流暢地做出動作。

The body's unique physical structure gives us the ability to stand up straight against the pull of gravity.

我們身體獨特的生理結構能讓我們抵抗地心引力，站得直挺挺。

Our blood depends on us moving around to be able to circulate properly.

四處移動能使我們的血液循環更加順暢。

Our nerve cells benefit from movement, and our skin is elastic, meaning it molds to our motions.

我們的神經元也能從身體移動中受益，此外，我們皮膚是有彈性的，意味著它能夠隨著我們的動作而變化。

So if every inch of the body is ready and waiting for you to move, what happens when you just don't?

當你全身上下都已經準備好等著你動動，而你就是偏不這麼做時，會發生什麼事呢？

Let's start with the backbone of the problem, literally.

讓我們從最重要的脊椎開始講起。

Your spine is a long structure made of bones and the cartilage discs that sit between them.

你的脊椎是個由骨頭及座落其中的軟骨盤構成的長形結構。

Joints, muscles and ligaments that are attached to the bones hold it all together.

接在骨頭上的關節、肌肉及韌帶，把脊椎連接在一起。

A common way of sitting is with a curved back and slumped shoulders, a position that puts uneven pressure on your spine.

彎腰駝背是相當常見的坐姿，這會造成你脊椎的壓力分配不均。

Over time, this causes wear and tear in your spinal discs, overworks certain ligaments and joints, and puts strain on muscles that stretch to accommodate your back's curved position.

長時間下來會磨損你的椎間盤、過度使用特定的韌帶及關節，並在負責伸展調適彎腰姿勢的肌肉上造成壓力。

This hunched shape also shrinks your chest cavity while you sit, meaning your lungs have less space to expand into when you breath.

當坐著時駝背的姿勢也會使你的胸腔縮小，這意味著當你呼吸時，肺擴張的空間會減少。

That's a problem because it temporarily limits the amount of oxygen that fills your lungs and filters into your blood.

這是個問題，因為這會暫時限制肺裡及進入血液中的氧氣含量。

Around the skeleton are the muscles, nerves, arteries and veins that form the body's soft tissue layers.

骨骼的周圍環繞著許多肌肉、神經、動靜脈，它們形成身體的軟組織層。

The very act of sitting squashes, pressurizes and compresses, and these more delicate tissues really feel the brunt.

這些脆弱的軟組織則首當其衝，承受坐下的這個動作所造成擠壓、加壓及壓縮。

Have you ever experienced numbness and swelling in your limbs when you sit?

你是否曾經在坐著時感覺到手腳發麻及腫脹？

In areas that are the most compressed, your nerves, arteries and veins can become blocked, which limits nerve signaling, causing the numbness, and reduces blood flow in your limbs, causing them to swell.

在最被壓縮的區塊，你的神經和動靜脈可能會被堵塞，這會限制神經發射訊號造成麻木感，也會減少流入四肢的血液造成腫脹。

Sitting for long periods also temporarily deactivates lipoprotein lipase, a special enzyme in the walls of blood capillaries that breaks down fats in the blood, so when you sit, you're not burning fat nearly as well as when you move around.

久坐也會使脂蛋白脂肪酶失去活性，脂蛋白脂肪酶是存在於微血管壁中能夠分解血液中脂肪的特別酵素，所以當你坐著時燃燒的脂肪比四處移動時來得少。

What effect does all of this stasis have on the brain?

坐著不動又會對我們的大腦造成什麼影響呢？

Most of the time, you probably sit down to use your brain, but ironically, lengthy periods of sitting actually run counter to this goal.

很多時候你坐著可能是為了動腦想事情，但諷刺的是，坐越久結果反而會背道而馳。

Being stationary reduces blood flow and the amount of oxygen entering your blood stream through your lungs.

靜止狀態會減少血液流量以及從肺進入血液的含氧量。

Your brain requires both of those things to remain alert, so your concentration levels will most likely dip as your brain activity slows.

你的大腦需要上述的兩樣東西來保持警覺性，所以你的專心度很有可能會因大腦活動趨緩而下滑。

Unfortunately, the ill effects of being seated don't only exist in the short term.

不幸的是，坐著的負面影響不是只有短期的。

Recent studies have found that sitting for long periods is linked with some types of cancers and heart disease and can contribute to diabetes, kidney and liver problems.

近期有研究指出久坐與某些癌症及心臟病變有相當程度的關聯，也會造成糖尿病，以及腎、肝的問題。

In fact, researchers have worked out that, worldwide, inactivity causes about 9 percent of premature deaths a year.

事實上研究人員指出，缺乏身體活動造成世界各地每年 9% 的早死案例。

That's over 5 million people.

也就是超過五百萬人口。

So what seems like such a harmless habit actually has the power to change our health.

所以說像這種看似無害的習慣，其實是會影響我們身體健康的。

But luckily, the solutions to this mounting threat are simple and intuitive.

不過幸運的是，解決這俱增威脅的方法是很簡單且直覺性的。

When you have no choice but to sit, try switching the slouch for a straighter spine, and when you don't have to be bound to your seat, aim to move around much more.

當你不得不坐著時，別彎腰駝背，要打直脊椎，當你不必再黏在椅子上時，要起來到處走走。

Perhaps by setting a reminder to yourself to get up every half hour.

或許可以藉著設個備忘錄來提醒自己每半個鐘頭就要起來走走。

But mostly, just appreciate that bodies are built for motion, not for stillness.

最重要的是，要認知到身體是為了移動而打造的，而不是為了靜止不動。

In fact, since the video's almost over, why not stand up and stretch right now?

既然這影片也快要結束了，何不站起來伸展一下呢？

Treat your body to a walk.

讓你的身體走走。

It'll thank you later.

它會感謝你的。