Associations of sedentary behavior and screen time with biomarkers of inflammation and insulin resistance

Sedentary behavior (SB) has been linked to risk factors of cardiometabolic disease, with inconsistent findings reported in the literature. We aimed to assess the associations of SB with multiple biomarkers of inflammation and insulin resistance in adults. Domain-specific SB, sitting time and moderate-to-vigorous physical activity (MVPA) were measured in 78 adults (mean ± SD 52.0 ± 10.8 y). Body fat percentage (BF%) was assessed using multi-frequency bioelectrical impedance. A blood draw assessed glucose, insulin, C-reactive protein (CRP), interleukin-6 (IL-6), tumor necrosis factor-alpha (TNF-α), leptin, and adiponectin. Adiponectin-leptin ratio (ALR), homeostasis model assessment of insulin resistance (HOMA-IR) and beta-cell function (HOMA-β) were calculated. Multivariable linear regression analyses, controlling for age, sex, MVPA, and BF%, were used to assess associations. After adjustment for age, sex and MVPA, total SB (7.5 ± 2.5 h/day) was positively associated with leptin, insulin, HOMA-IR, HOMA-β (Standardized Beta (β) range 0.21–0.32) and negatively associated with ALR (β = -0.24, p < 0.05 for all). Similarly, total sitting time (7.2 ± 2.9 h/day) was associated with TNF-α (β = 0.22) and ALR (β = -0.26). These associations were attenuated to non-significance after adjustment for BF%. Leisure screen time was detrimentally associated with IL-6 (β = 0.24), leptin (β = 0.21), insulin (β = 0.37), HOMA-IR (β = 0.37), and HOMA-β (β = 0.34), independent of age, sex and MVPA (p < 0.05 for all). Only the associations with insulin (β = 0.26), HOMA-IR (β = 0.26), and HOMA-β (β = 0.23) remained significant after further controlling BF% (p < 0.05). Self-reported SB is associated with biomarkers of inflammation and insulin resistance, independent of MVPA, and in some cases BF%.