The Study
Sitting-rising test scores predict natural and cardiovascular causes of deaths in middle-aged and older men and women.
This study found that people who had a harder time sitting down and standing up without using their hands or knees were more likely to die over the next 12 years. But it doesn't prove that sitting and rising poorly causes death — maybe people who are sicker just can't do the test well. It's like noticing that people who don't run fast are more likely to get sick — but running fast doesn't necessarily keep you healthy.
Analysis score
Maximum 72 for a cohort study.
Where the score came from
Scientists asked middle-aged and older people to sit down and stand up from the floor without using their hands or knees, and scored them from 0 to 10.
Where does this study sit?
Reviews of RCTs (Meta-analyses)
Max 100Randomized Trials
Max 90Reviews of Cohort Studies
Max 85Cohort Studies
Max 72Reviews of Case-Control Studies
Max 63Case-Control Studies
Max 58Cross-Sectional & Case Series
Max 50Expert Opinion
Max 552 / 100
Quality score
Groups of people are followed over time to see who develops an outcome. Strong for identifying risk factors and associations, but cannot prove causation as firmly as RCTs.
Key takeaways
Summary
Based on the study abstract and findings.
- 1If you can't stand up from the floor without using your hands or knees, your risk of dying from heart disease or other natural causes is much higher — similar to having heart disease.
- 2People who scored 0–4 (needed help to stand) were 6 times more likely to die from heart problems and 4 times more likely to die from any natural cause than those who scored 10 (stood up easily).
Score breakdown, methodology, conflicts of interest, evidence analysis & raw study data
Publication
Journal
European journal of preventive cardiology
Year
2025
Authors
Claudio Gil S Araújo, Christina G de Souza e Silva, J. Myers, J. Laukkanen, P. Ramos, D. Ricardo
Related Content
Claims (6)
People who score lower on the sitting-rising test have higher rates of death from any cause and from cardiovascular disease.
Middle-aged and older adults who score 8 or higher on a sitting–rising test have death rates similar to those of healthy individuals.
Adults aged 46–75 who score 0–4 on the sitting–rising test have a 3.84 times higher rate of death from natural causes and a 6.05 times higher rate of death from cardiovascular disease than those who score 10, even when accounting for age, sex, body weight, and existing health conditions.
In adults aged 46–75, lower scores on the sitting–rising test are linked to higher rates of death from natural causes and cardiovascular disease.
People who cannot stand from the floor without help have five to six times higher risk of dying from natural or cardiovascular causes than those who can stand easily.
People who score 0–4 on the sitting–rising test have a 6.05 times higher risk of dying from heart disease than those who score 10, and this test is a stronger predictor of heart-related death than overall death from any cause.
Not medical advice. For informational purposes only. Always consult a qualified healthcare professional before making health decisions.