Despite the pervasiveness of fast food and huge portions now the norm at U.S. restaurants, research shows our fat and caloric intakes have held steady in recent decades. More Americans work in offices or other sedentary settings now that industrial and manufacturing jobs have given way to a service, technology and information-based economy. Even the lunch hour is disappearing as a relic of the past. For almost a third of workers, the lunch hour consists of scarfing down food while still toiling away on our computers or phones. From Desk Potato to Couch Potato Unfortunately for our nation's health, not enough Americans are compensating for their lack of movement during the day by squeezing workouts into their busy schedules.
Workers are more likely to get home, plop on the couch and watch television.
Our human instincts for efficiency have probably helped us evolve to this level of inactivity in our daily lives, Hensrud says, leading to such inventions as the elevator and the computer. But nowadays in our society, it's coming back to haunt us. Calculate your body mass index. Park several blocks from work or at the far end of the parking lot. Get up and walk to see co-workers instead of calling or emailing them.