Binge watching your favorite TV shows on Netflix has become a cultural phenomenon in many parts of the world but according to one study, it could be fatal.
Researchers in Japan studied the TV viewing habits of 86,000 people between the ages of 40 and 79 from 1988 through 1990. The participants were then monitored over the next 19 years and what the researchers found was alarming.
Every additional two hours of TV watched per day increased the odds of developing a fatal pulmonary embolism by 40 percent.
A pulmonary embolism typically begins with a blood clot in the body that eventually moves to the lungs. It's often associated with leading a sedentary lifestyle which, for most people, binge watching TV certainly contributes to.
In the study, 59 participants died from pulmonary embolisms.
Of course, watching television wasn't the only factor that those who perished had in common as being obese was second on the list.
Professor Hiroyasu Iso, the lead researcher from Osaka University, said pulmonary embolisms occurs at a lower rate in Japan than they do in Western countries but it may be on the rise, adding that Japanese people are increasingly adopting sedentary lifestyles which they believe is putting them at risk.
Professor Iso urges binge watchers to stand up, stretch or walk around every hour or so. At the very least, one should tense and relax their leg muscles each hour for five minutes as they Netflix and chill.
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