A recent study from the Universities of Bristol, Exeter, and Eastern Finland reveals a concerning link between increased sedentary behavior in childhood and premature liver damage, with light physical activity (LPA) shown to mitigate these risks. The research, published in Nature’s npj Gut and Liver, highlights that each additional half-hour of sedentary time beyond six hours daily raises the risk of developing severe fatty liver disease and liver cirrhosis by 15 percent by the age of 24. Alarmingly, the prevalence of metabolic-associated steatotic liver disease (MASLD) surged from 2.5% at age 17 to 20% by age 24, a significant rise for this age group.
In the study, which monitored 2,684 children from the “Children of the 90s” cohort, researchers employed accelerometers to track movement and conducted liver ultrasound scans at ages 17 and 24. Results showed that sedentary time increased from an average of six hours per day in childhood to nine hours in young adulthood, while LPA time decreased from six hours to just three. The findings indicate that engaging in at least three hours of LPA daily can reduce the risk of severe fatty liver disease by 33%.
Andrew Agbaje, an associate professor of clinical epidemiology, emphasized the importance of LPA—such as outdoor games and walking—over the more commonly promoted moderate-to-vigorous physical activity. He called for urgent public health measures to encourage children to engage in more LPA, suggesting that these activities could help counteract the looming health risks associated with a sedentary lifestyle and promote better liver health.
