Discussion
obesity, adiposity
OBESITY, ADIPOSITY, CARDIOVASCULAR DISEASE
In this observational study using combined data from three different studies, we examined cross-sectional associations of short (1 to 10 min), moderate (>10 to 30 min), and long (>30 min) sedentary bouts with WC and BMI in subjects without prevalent cardiovascular disease. Our data revealed three main findings: first, there was a statistically significant inverse relationship of the daily number of short sedentary bouts with BMI but not with WC. Second, the daily number of moderate sedentary bouts was not related to WC or BMI. Third, the daily number of long sedentary bouts was significantly associated with a higher WC but not with BMI.A number of studies investigated associations between sedentary behaviour patterns and obesity metrics [In our study, associations of short sedentary bouts were only statistically significant for BMI but not for WC. However, associations of quartiles of short bouts showed that compared to those with the lowest number of bouts (i.e., first quartile) individuals with the highest number of bouts (i.e., third and fourth quartile) had not only a significantly lower BMI, but also a significantly lower WC. Thus, the relationship with WC may be curvilinear (Fig. Our results provide some evidence for beneficial associations of short sedentary bouts and for unfavourable associations of long sedentary bouts with adiposity markers. These findings suggest that obesity-related risk factors might be improved if sitting time is frequently interrupted and if sitting periods that last longer than 30 min are avoided. It has been discussed in the literature, whether benefits of sedentary breaks solely stem from favourable effects of higher amounts of physical activity [