Study: Watching Too Much TV May Increase Risk of Dying from Blood Clots

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Spending too much time in front of the TV may increase your risk of dying from a blood clot in the lung, the American Heart News reports.

A Japanese study tracked 86,000 people for 19 years, and 59 died of a pulmonary embolism. This condition, stemming from inactivity, is caused by blood clots that travel to the lungs from the legs.

Researchers found that pulmonary embolism death increased by:

• 70% among those who watched TV 2.5-4.9 hours (versus those who watched less than 2.5 hours)
• 40% for each additional 2 hours of daily TV watching.
• 2.5 times among those who watched TV 5 or more hours.

Although the study examined Japanese adults, the findings may be very relevant for U.S. adults, who watch far more TV.

U.S. Latinos may face an especially high risk.

Latino kids are exposed to 13 hours of media a day—including TV watching—compared to 8 hours among white kids, research shows.

The rise of “binge watching” TV could be partly to blame, according to the researchers behind the Japanese study.

“People are increasingly adopting sedentary lifestyles, which we believe is putting them at increased risk,” Dr. Hiroyasu Iso, professor of public health at Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine, told American Heart News.

Iso said that when watching TV for an extended amount of time, there are a few ways to reduce the risk of developing clot in your legs.

“After an hour or so, stand up, stretch, walk around, or while you’re watching TV, tense and relax your leg muscles for five minutes,” he said, noting the advice is similar to that given to travelers on long plane flights. Drinking water may also help and shedding pounds if overweight is likely to reduce risk, according to American Heart News.