Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40139721›Full record

ArticleBritish journal of sports medicine2025

Genetic liability to sedentary behaviour and cardiovascular disease incidence in the FinnGen and HUNT cohorts.

Laura Joensuu, Kaisa Koivunen, Niko Paavo Tynkkynen, Teemu Palviainen, Jaakko Kaprio, FinnGen Consortium, Marie Klevjer, Karsten Øvretveit, Ulrik Wisløff, Anja Bye and 2 more

Abstract read
In one paragraph

Article in British journal of sports medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 4 papers.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed.

  1. Article
  2. LifeZhong nan da xue xue bao. Yi xue ban = Journal of Central South University. Medical sciences · 2026
    Article
  3. Article
  4. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

12 authors.

Laura JoensuuGerontology Research Center, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland laura.p.joensuu@jyu.fi.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-9544-6552
Kaisa KoivunenGerontology Research Center, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-0710-0069
Niko Paavo TynkkynenGerontology Research Center, Faculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8245-1275
Teemu PalviainenInstitute for Molecular Medicine Finland, HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7847-8384
Jaakko KaprioInstitute for Molecular Medicine Finland, HiLIFE, University of Helsinki, Helsinki, Finland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-3716-2455
FinnGen Consortium
Marie KlevjerCardiac Exercise Research Group, Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-8372-276X
Karsten ØvretveitHUNT Center for Molecular and Clinical Epidemiology, Department of Public Health and Nursing, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-5528-0674
Ulrik WisløffCardiac Exercise Research Group, Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0002-7211-3587
Anja ByeCardiac Exercise Research Group, Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-1259-5542
Ulf EkelundDepartment of Sports Medicine, Norwegian School of Sport Sciences, Oslo, Norway.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-2115-9267
Elina SillanpääFaculty of Sport and Health Sciences, University of Jyväskylä, Jyväskylä, Finland.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0001-6375-959X

Funding

Wellcome Trust
6 · The paper itself

Abstract

objectiveEnergy-saving sedentary behaviour may be an evolutionarily selected trait that is no longer advantageous. We investigated the associations between genetic liability to sedentary behaviour and the incidence of the most common cardiovascular disease (CVD).

methodsWe constructed and validated a genome-wide polygenic score for leisure screen time (PGS LST) as a measure of genetic liability to sedentary behaviour. We performed survival analyses between higher PGS LST and register-based CVDs using the FinnGen cohort (N=293 250-333 012). Replication and exploratory analyses were conducted in an independent Norwegian Trøndelag Health Study (HUNT) cohort (N=35 289).

resultsIn FinnGen, each SD increase in PGS LST was associated with a higher risk of incident CVD (HR: 1.05 (95% CI 1.05 to 1.06)) (168 770 cases over 17 101 133 person-years). The magnitudes of association for the three most common CVDs were 1.09 ((95% CI 1.08 to 1.09), 1.06 ((95% CI 1.05 to 1.07) and 1.05 ((95% CI 1.04 to 1.06) for hypertensive disease, ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease, respectively. Those in the top decile of PGS LST had 21%, 35%, 26% and 19% higher risk of any CVD, hypertensive disease, ischaemic heart disease and cerebrovascular disease, respectively, than those in the bottom decile. Associations were replicated in HUNT and remained independent of covariates (socioeconomic status, body mass index and smoking) except for cerebrovascular disease. Besides direct effects, reduced physical activity served as a potential mediating pathway for the observed associations.

conclusionsWe found that genetic liability to sedentary behaviour is associated with incident CVD, although effect sizes with current PGS remained small. These findings suggest that genetic liability to sedentary behaviour is an under-recognised driver of common CVDs.

Indexed as

Cardiovascular DiseasesGenetic Predisposition to DiseaseSedentary BehaviorAdultAgedCohort StudiesFemaleFinlandGenome-Wide Association StudyHumansIncidenceLeisure ActivitiesMaleMiddle AgedMultifactorial InheritanceNorwayCardiologyEpidemiologyGeneticsPublic healthSports medicine

Identifiers

PMID40139721
PMCPMC12171481

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

None linked

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.