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Our waists are getting bigger, our blood pressure is increasing, and our glucose metabolism is deteriorating, even if we are getting plenty of exercise. The person who bikes to and from work but spends 8 hours on the job sitting in front of a screen suffers these ill effects just like the coworker who commutes by car. The obvious solution would be to have workers stand up, right?
Standing desks, treadmill desks, and similar solutions have become popular in the wake of the bad news about sitting.
Unfortunately, it may not be quite that simple—prolonged standing is also hazardous to workers’ health. Keep reading to find out what too much of either will do to your body.
Health Effects of Prolonged Sitting
In a 2013 review of literature published in Harefuah, the journal of the Israel Medical Association, the authors found a consistently demonstrated relationship between sedentary behavior and health risks. The problem is compounded by the fact that sitting doesn’t just take place at work; workers sit in their cars on the way to and from the workplace, they sit at work, and they sit for recreational activities like watching television, movies, and sporting events.
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Researchers found that prolonged sitting—for a total of 8 or 9 hours per day, including working, television time, and time in a car—is strongly correlated with:
- Premature death from all causes;
- Chronic diseases, including cardiovascular disease, diabetes, and cancer;
- Metabolic syndrome (a precursor to diabetes);
- Back, neck, and shoulder pain; and
- Obesity.
Health Effects of Prolonged Standing
Workers who stand all day aren’t doing much better, though. In December 2014, the National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health’s science blog published an article on the ergonomic harm done to workers who spend all day on their feet, unable to sit down. Nurses and retail workers demonstrate in their sore feet, back pain, swollen legs, and increased cardiovascular symptoms that standing all day is not the antidote to sitting all day.
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Prolonged standing—for more than 4 hours without a break, especially in a single spot—is associated with:
- Back pain;
- Circulation problems in the legs, including swelling, pooling of blood, and varicose veins;
- Leg cramps;
- Preterm birth and spontaneous abortion in pregnant women; and
- Cardiovascular disease.
What’s a health-conscious employer to do? Tomorrow, we’ll look at some strategies for mixing up the workday.