Apple Watch will start shipping in April, with prices starting at $349

'A lot of doctors believe sitting is the new cancer,' Cook said at a Goldman Sachs technology conference in San Francisco on Tuesday

intermittently to remind him to get up and move around

The Apple CEO says his smartwatch is set to vibrate

Tim Cook has hit out at the sedentary lifestyle of many people, claiming that sitting is terrible for your health -and that the upcoming Apple Watch can help.

While addressing a Goldman Sachs tech conference in San Francisco on Tuesday, the Apple CEO said 'a lot of doctors believe sitting is the new cancer.'

Cook revealed he's been using his Apple smartwatch to remind him to get up and move every hour.

'Sitting is the new cancer': Apple CEO made a startling statement while plugging the soon to be released Apple Watch

'If I sit for too long, it will actually tap me on the wrist to remind me to get up and move, because a lot of doctors think sitting is the new cancer,' said Cook.

'Ten minutes before the hour, it will remind you to move. We have a lot of people using the Apple Watch at Apple, and ten minutes before the hour, suddenly they all get up and move.

'It took a little to get used to, but it's great.'

The $349 must-have gadget starts shipping in April.

Cook made the announcement just as Apple became the first company to reach a market value of $700 billion.

Shares rose 1.9 percent to close at $122.02, lifting Apple's market value to $710 billion, and making it the first company to hit the $700 billion milestone.

Cook, speaking at the Goldman Sachs Technology & Internet Conference, said Apple was hitting its stride.

'We've taken (the mobile operating system) iOS and extended it into your car, into your home, into your health. All of these are really critical parts of your life,' Cook said.

'We want one seamless kind of life.

'And so, I think that is huge for our future...We also did a lot of things to further our global footprint. And so, if you look at what we've done in China, we've opened more stores there.

'We've opened a lot more distribution there. Through the world, we've opened almost 20,000 new points of sale.

IS TIM COOK RIGHT? HOW SITTING MAY BE AKIN TO THE NEW SMOKING (THOUGH MAYBE NOT CANCER) As several recent studies have discovered, sitting for too long can be as dangerous to health as smoking. It more than doubles your risk of diabetes and is linked with an increase in heart disease. In fact, inactivity is the fourth biggest killer of adults, according to the World Health Organisation. But the scariest thing of all? The results are the same however much exercise people do when they're not sitting down. 'Most people think that if they work out every day that's all they need to do,' says researcher Dr Emma Wilmot, whose team at the University of Leicester analysed 18 studies incorporating a total of 800,000 people. 'But those with jobs that require sitting all day may still be at risk. 'When we sit for long periods of time, enzyme changes occur in our muscles that can lead to increased blood sugar levels. The effects happen very quickly, and regular exercise won't fully protect you.' Advertisement

The widely anticipated first Apple 'wearable' will likely start shipping in April, Cook said

BIGGER THAN ISRAEL The U.S. tech giant recently posted record revenue of $74.6 billion (£49.2bn) for the three months to December 31, outstripping the quarterly GDP of Israel, Greece or Denmark. Apple's cash pile is now $178 billion (£117bn), the equivalent to $556 for every American and bigger than the £95billion budget for Britain's National Health Service. Its landmark performance was driven by record-breaking sales for its iPhone 6 and 6 plus, with the firm revealing it sold 34,000 handsets every hour for the entire quarter. Advertisement

'We've opened 27 new Apple Stores, lot of flagship stores.'

Cook said Apple took some $50 billion in revenue in emerging markets over the past calendar year.

Brian White, analyst at Cantor Fitzgerald, said the leading tech company has even more room to grow.

'Given Apple's powerful iPhone cycle, a big 4G ramp in China and the upcoming launch of Apple Watch in April, we believe there is still plenty to look forward to at Apple during this transformational cycle,' he said in a note to clients.

'At the same time, we believe Apple's valuation has room to expand from depressed levels.'

Apple shares remain valued at reasonable levels, according to analysts, because of the whopping $18 billion quarterly profit reported recently by the iPhone and iPad maker.

Using the price-earnings ratio favored by Wall Street, Apple is valued at around 16 times its annual earnings, but Fitzgerald said the value was only around 10 times the projected earnings for the next fiscal year.

Apple is far ahead in market value from the number two company, oil giant Exxon Mobil, worth some $382 billion at the market close.

Historic first: Apple on Tuesday became the first company in history to reach a market value of $700 billion

The record Apple quarterly profit -- on unprecedented revenue of $74.6 billion -- was driven by the sale of 74.5 million iPhones, well ahead of most analysts' expectations.

Analysts are also seeing expanded adoption of the Apple Pay system that enables customers to purchase items with a tap of their iPhone, and many predict strong demand for the Apple Watch set for release in April.

Separately, Apple agreed to commit $848 million for solar energy to power its data centers, according to a statement from First Solar, Inc.