The International Diabetes Federation reports that one in nine individuals between ages 20 and 79 worldwide is living with diabetes, roughly 589 million adults, and that this number is expected to rise to 853 million by 2050. 

Risk factors for diabetes are sometimes tied to uncontrollable variables. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention notes that type 1 diabetes is thought to result from an autoimmune reaction, and individuals with a parent or sibling with type 1 diabetes are at greater risk for the disease than those without such a family history.

However, according to the Cleveland Clinic, many risk factors for type 2 diabetes account for more than 90% of diabetes cases and are within individuals’ control. For example, sitting for extended periods of time has been linked to type 2 diabetes. A 2015 meta-analysis published in the journal Medicine and Sport Science suggested that prolonged sedentary behavior is associated with an 112% greater risk of type 2 diabetes. One reason is that long periods of sitting affect metabolism. Another is that sitting requires muscles to work less. The diaTribe Foundation notes that sitting affects how muscles respond to insulin, the hormone that reduces blood sugar. This can affect a person’s ability to contract their muscles, making it harder to regulate blood sugar, possibly resulting in insulin resistance and increasing the risk of type 2 diabetes.

Surveys from the CDC indicate that people self-report sitting for 6.5 to 8 hours per day, while other studies suggest that heavy screen users may spend as much as 11 hours per day sitting. That’s a potentially dangerous and costly development, but people can confront it head-on by making a concerted effort to reduce daily sitting time.