Bingeing on Netflix or TV box-sets could be fatal, research suggests. Hours of inactivity spent in front of a television sharply raises the risk of dying from a blood clot in the lungs, say Japanese scientists who studied the TV viewing habits of more than 86,000 people, the Telegraph reports.

Researchers from Osaka University Graduate School of Medicine concluded that recent trends – such as binge-watching box sets via online streaming, and reliance on laptops and tablets – could put increased numbers at risk.

Although the overall risk of such deaths appeared low – just 59 deaths from the fatal clots were recorded from among 86,000 cases tracked – the scientists said cases were likely to be under-reported, as the condition can easily be missed. They also calculated people who watch five or more hours of programs daily are more than twice as likely to die as those who watch less than two and a half hours.

They added that blood-clot risks could be greatly reduced by taking a five-minute walk every hour.