People in Germany are spending far too much time sitting and are finding it harder to cope with stress, a new study into health in the federal republic has concluded. 

Germans sit for 8,5 hours on workdays

In a new record low since the “DKV Report” was first conducted in 2010, only one in nine Germans leads an “all-round healthy lifestyle” - a definition that takes into account diet, physical activity, smoking, alcohol consumption and stress levels. 

The 2021 report - which is the sixth iteration of the study conducted by the health insurance company and was based upon interviews with a representative sample of 2.800 people aged 18 and over - found that Germans now spend an average of 8,5 hours sitting down on workdays - one hour more than in 2018. 

Young adults aged 18 to 29 are now the “world champions in sitting”, spending 10,5 hours sat down on workdays. The report acknowledged that the coronavirus pandemic had worsened the habit of sitting too much, as people transitioned from the workplace to the home office. The latter was described as a “sit-down trap”. 

“Germans have become even more lazy”

The report also contained worrying findings about stress levels in Germany, with around 60 percent of respondents saying that they cannot find any ways to reduce or compensate for their perceived stress. This is the highest stress level measured so far. Women reported higher levels of stress than men, juggling the demands of working, childcare and homeschooling. 

Inactivity has also increased since the last report. Around 70 percent of respondents said they are physically active for more than 300 minutes per week, either at work, during leisure time, or while travelling. This is a significant drop since 2010, when 83 percent said they were this active. One in five respondents do less than 150 minutes of physical activity a week. 

“Germans were already lazy and they’ve become even more lazy,” said Ingo Froböse of the Cologne Sports University, which contributed to the study. He concluded that people in Germany were living more unhealthily than any time since the first report in 2010.