The health case for height adjustable desks

From getting behind the wheel of your car, to huddling over a desk at work, to relaxing on the sofa in the evening, you might find you spend a long time sitting down during a typical day. However, there may be simple changes you could make to your routine that dramatically cut the amount of time you spend in a sitting position. One action you could take is to make the switch from using a regular office desk to a height adjustable model. In this blog, we take a look at the health case for making this transition. Study shows sitting can dramatically increase disease risk Most of us are aware that spending long periods of time sitting down doesn’t do much good for our waistlines, but did you know that it could also increase your risk of a range of potentially serious diseases? One study that has highlighted this danger was conducted by a team from Leicester and Loughborough universities. Published in Diabetologia, the research analysed a total of 18 existing studies involving a combined total of nearly 800,000 people. It found that sitting down for long periods of time increased people’s risks of heart disease, diabetes and death. Compared to the least time doing sedentary tasks, the most time spent sedentary was associated with a: 147 per cent increase in cardiovascular events 112 per cent increase in risk of diabetes 90 per cent increase in death due to cardiovascular events 49 per cent increase in death due to any cause. The study also suggested that going to the gym to get stuck into bursts of activity doesn’t offset the danger posed by excessive sitting. Instead, the researchers suggested that substituting sedentary behaviour with light-intensity physical activity or standing may be a better way to reduce the risk of mortality and chronic disease. About this, study leader Dr Emma Wilmot said: “If a worker sits at their desk all day then goes to the gym, while their colleague heads home to watch TV, then the gym-goer will have better health outcomes. But there is still a health risk because of the amount of sitting they do. Comparatively, the risk for a waiter who is on their feet all day is going to be a lot lower.” She added that people should not convince themselves they are living healthily if they do half an hour of exercise a day. According to the expert, “they need to think about the 23.5 hours”. A long-term problem The scientists behind the study noted that the link between poorer health outcomes and time spent sitting down was first recognised as long ago as the 1950s, when scientists discovered that London bus drivers were twice as likely as their conductor colleagues to suffer heart attacks. This issue may be getting worse because of the nature of people’s work and the technologies we now rely on. A 2011 study suggested that the average adult now spends between 50 and 60 per cent of their day doing sedentary pursuits. Is it time to make the switch to a height adjustable desk? Swapping from a regular office desk to a height adjustable model might seem like a relatively small change, but it could have a big impact on your health. The simple act of standing at your workstation rather than sitting can help your body to control blood glucose levels more effectively. It also requires greater exertion and makes the heart beat faster, meaning you burn more calories. Over the course of an hour, it is has been found that people can burn around 50 more calories by standing rather than sitting. There are now an impressive range of height adjustable desks available for you to choose from. At Furniture At Work, we offer a variety of these solutions, including Sit & Stand rectangular desks with electronic height adjustments and designs with right hand waves or left hand waves. These desks are easy to adjust, giving you a flexible working platform that you can use in either a seated or a standing position. What else can you do to reduce your sitting time? As well as potentially investing in a height adjustable desk, there are various other simple changes you can make that should help you to reduce the amount of time you spend sitting down. For example, when you’re at work, look for opportunities to get up and move around more. Perhaps you could walk over to colleagues when you need to ask them something, rather than automatically relying on email. Try standing while you’re talking on the phone too, and consider taking the stairs rather than the lift. Also, if you tend to eat your lunch at your desk, why not make the effort to go outside and have a walk on your break instead? As well as helping you to get more active, this can give your eyes a welcome rest from the screen, and it might leave you feeling more refreshed and energetic for the afternoon. If you drive to work or get the bus, perhaps you could swap four wheels for two and get on your bike instead. This is an effective way to increase your activity levels, and as well as being good for your health, it is great for the environment. If you live close enough to your office, walking is another good alternative to driving. This might take considerably longer than using a car, but like cycling, it’s an effective way to build more exercise into your daily routine. You could help to get your colleagues more active too by organising social sports in the evenings or starting a walking club at lunch. This can make it easier to keep up your motivation, and it can be great for morale in the office. Whether it’s by switching to a standing desk or changing your habits at work, finding ways to be more active could be crucial for your health.