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Study: TV binge watching is bad for your health

WASHINGTON — All that TV binge watching could be hazardous to your health.

Researchers in Japan say they’ve got proof that sitting in front of a television for hours on end raises the risk of blood clots — usually in the legs — that can trigger a deadly pulmonary embolism.

They followed 86,000 people for 18 years. Those who watched TV for five hours or more were twice as likely to get a deadly clot as those who watched two and a half hours a day or less.

It’s similar to the health risks associated with long-haul flights in cramped seats, often referred to as “economy class syndrome.”

Lead researcher Tory Shirakawa, a public health specialist at Osaka University, says in both flying and prolonged TV watching, leg immobility is a big part of the problem.

He says the preventative medicine is the same: take breaks, stand up and walk around.

Shirakawa and his team presented their findings at a meeting of the European Society of Cardiology in London.

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