Stand up at your office desk for a healthier heart and brain: NHS is trialing the benefits of height-adjustable desks
Sitting for long periods has been shown to damage health
NHS is running a year-long trial at three hospitals in Leicestershire
Desks will offer choice of raising or lowering them as you work
Sitting for long periods has been shown to damage health, and is linked to a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
Some researchers have even compared it to the ill-effects of smoking. Now the NHS is running a year-long trial assessing the benefits of height-adjustable desks.
Three hospitals in Leicestershire will get the desks, which offer the choice of raising or lowering them as you work at a computer. Staff using the desks will also be given regular prompts via a wristband reminding them to move.
Those using these techniques will be compared with colleagues who will carry on working as normal, comparing their musculoskeletal health, mood and fatigue, as well as job satisfaction and absenteeism.
This trial follows Australian research published last year that found that sit-stand desks - which cost upwards of £300 each - can reduce the amount of time spent sitting at work by 73 minutes a day in just four weeks.
Studies have long linked excessive sitting to increased risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In the Fifties, researchers found that London bus drivers were twice as likely to have heart attacks as their bus conductor colleagues.
More recently a study of 800,000 people found that, compared with those who sat the least, people who sat the longest had a 112 per cent increased risk of type 2 diabetes, a 147 per cent increase in cardiovascular problems and a 90 per cent increase in death from heart attack and stroke.
People who sat the longest had a 112 per cent increased risk of type 2 diabetes
Last year a study of 2,000 people by the Medical College of Wisconsin found that sitting for most of the day increases fatty deposits in the arteries, regardless of how much exercise was taken.
In fact, for every hour spent sitting, the levels of fatty deposits in the arteries increased by 14 per cent, and this, in turn, increased the risk of a heart attack. It is also linked to breathing difficulties and bowel problems, and may cause weaker muscles and bones. It is thought excessive sitting slows the metabolism, which affects the ability to regulate blood sugar and blood pressure, and process fat.
Dr Fehmidah Munir, reader in health psychology at Loughborough University, who is leading the new trial in Leicestershire, says: 'The evidence suggests that if you are sitting for eight or nine hours and you then do one hour of exercise, it has very little impact.
'We hope that by breaking up the bouts of sitting, and allowing the blood and oxygen to flow through the body better, it will result in improved health, well-being and work engagement.'
Commenting on the trial, Dr Chris Tyler, a senior lecturer in exercise physiology at Roehampton University, Surrey, said: 'People often cite a lack of time as a major barrier to physical activity, and so an intervention to facilitate a less sedentary working environment is one that has huge potential benefits to both employers and employee.
Meanwhile, students given standing desks have been found to participate more in lessons than those sitting down.
In a study that looked at 282 students aged seven to ten years old for two terms, those with standing desks were 12 percent more likely to answer questions or join in class discussions, reported the International Journal of Health Promotion and Education.
The researchers from Texas A&M University suggest standing helps students to concentrate, as the decision about whether to sit or stand helps break the monotony. Being active also increases brain connections, improving concentration.
Sitting for long periods has been shown to damage health
NHS is running a year-long trial at three hospitals in Leicestershire
Desks will offer choice of raising or lowering them as you work
Sitting for long periods has been shown to damage health, and is linked to a greater risk of cardiovascular disease and type 2 diabetes.
Some researchers have even compared it to the ill-effects of smoking. Now the NHS is running a year-long trial assessing the benefits of height-adjustable desks.
Three hospitals in Leicestershire will get the desks, which offer the choice of raising or lowering them as you work at a computer. Staff using the desks will also be given regular prompts via a wristband reminding them to move.
Those using these techniques will be compared with colleagues who will carry on working as normal, comparing their musculoskeletal health, mood and fatigue, as well as job satisfaction and absenteeism.
This trial follows Australian research published last year that found that sit-stand desks - which cost upwards of £300 each - can reduce the amount of time spent sitting at work by 73 minutes a day in just four weeks.
Studies have long linked excessive sitting to increased risk of cardiovascular disease and premature death. In the Fifties, researchers found that London bus drivers were twice as likely to have heart attacks as their bus conductor colleagues.
More recently a study of 800,000 people found that, compared with those who sat the least, people who sat the longest had a 112 per cent increased risk of type 2 diabetes, a 147 per cent increase in cardiovascular problems and a 90 per cent increase in death from heart attack and stroke.
People who sat the longest had a 112 per cent increased risk of type 2 diabetes
Last year a study of 2,000 people by the Medical College of Wisconsin found that sitting for most of the day increases fatty deposits in the arteries, regardless of how much exercise was taken.
In fact, for every hour spent sitting, the levels of fatty deposits in the arteries increased by 14 per cent, and this, in turn, increased the risk of a heart attack. It is also linked to breathing difficulties and bowel problems, and may cause weaker muscles and bones. It is thought excessive sitting slows the metabolism, which affects the ability to regulate blood sugar and blood pressure, and process fat.
Dr Fehmidah Munir, reader in health psychology at Loughborough University, who is leading the new trial in Leicestershire, says: 'The evidence suggests that if you are sitting for eight or nine hours and you then do one hour of exercise, it has very little impact.
'We hope that by breaking up the bouts of sitting, and allowing the blood and oxygen to flow through the body better, it will result in improved health, well-being and work engagement.'
Commenting on the trial, Dr Chris Tyler, a senior lecturer in exercise physiology at Roehampton University, Surrey, said: 'People often cite a lack of time as a major barrier to physical activity, and so an intervention to facilitate a less sedentary working environment is one that has huge potential benefits to both employers and employee.
Meanwhile, students given standing desks have been found to participate more in lessons than those sitting down.
In a study that looked at 282 students aged seven to ten years old for two terms, those with standing desks were 12 percent more likely to answer questions or join in class discussions, reported the International Journal of Health Promotion and Education.
The researchers from Texas A&M University suggest standing helps students to concentrate, as the decision about whether to sit or stand helps break the monotony. Being active also increases brain connections, improving concentration.
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