What Standing Too A lot May Imply for Your Coronary heart Well being

This WFH staple ensures you do not spend nearly all of your day sitting—which we have heard one million instances can result in circumstances like poor coronary heart well being down the road. Or so we thought.

A new examine¹ printed yesterday in The Worldwide Journal of Epidemiology suggests standing desks do not truly cut back your danger of illnesses like stroke and coronary heart failure.

A more in-depth take a look at the brand new examine

The examine included over 80,000 wholesome adults from the UK. For 2 years, individuals wore wrist accelerometers that recorded how a lot time they spent sitting and standing.

When researchers assessed the info and adopted up with them over a six-year interval, they discovered sitting for greater than 10 hours a day was related to an elevated danger of heart problems. Extra shocking? Standing extra (in contrast with sitting) would not cut back the chance of coronary heart circumstances like coronary heart illness, stroke, and coronary heart failure. Moreover, standing extra may truly improve your danger of varicose veins (enlarged veins) and deep vein thrombosis (a blood clot in your veins).

Standing extra would not cut back the chance of circumstances like coronary heart illness, stroke, and coronary heart failure.

Extra particularly, for each half-hour spent standing past two hours, the chance of those well being points elevated by 11 p.c. (It is value noting that examine individuals did not *particularly* use standing desks to measure the well being impacts of elevated standing.)

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There are a few caveats to bear in mind. First, that is an observational examine, which implies it is exhibiting correlation—not causation. In different phrases, it discovered a connection between standing an excessive amount of and an elevated danger of poor coronary heart well being. This doesn’t suggest you are assured to develop a coronary heart situation sooner or later in the event you stand an excessive amount of.

Moreover, this examine attracts from UK Biobank information. The UK Biobank is a database and analysis useful resource that shops the medical and genetic information of 500,000 UK individuals for analysis identical to this examine. Nevertheless, UK Biobank volunteers haven’t any earlier medical points and are not an correct illustration of nearly all of individuals, in keeping with a 2017 American Journal of Epidemiology article².

The underside line

“The important thing takeaway is that standing for too lengthy is not going to offset an in any other case sedentary life-style and could possibly be dangerous for some individuals when it comes to circulatory well being,” mentioned Matthew Ahmadi, a postdoctoral analysis fellow on the College of Sydney and lead examine writer, in a press launch.

As an alternative of standing for a majority of your day, Ahmadi and his fellow researchers recommend you must as a substitute schedule common motion all through the day.

“Take common breaks, stroll round, go for a strolling assembly, use the steps, take common breaks when driving lengthy distances, or use that lunch hour to get away from the desk and do some motion,” Ahmadi mentioned.

These are generally known as “train breaks” or “train snacks.” You could possibly even “microdose” health by taking fast stretch breaks, doing brief cardio bursts, busting out just a few squats when you wait to your espresso to brew, and even finishing some family chores (as a result of cleansing the toilet is a severe exercise!).

When you have a bit extra time in your day, a 2024 examine³ within the Worldwide Journal of Behavioral Vitamin and Bodily Exercise discovered that about six minutes of vigorous-intensity train or half-hour of moderate-to-vigorous train per day may assist decrease your danger of coronary heart illness—even in the event you’re largely sedentary 11 hours a day or extra.

FYI: Vigorous train is something that is 70 to 85 p.c of your most coronary heart price and reasonable train is something that will get you to 50 to 70 p.c of your most coronary heart price, in keeping with the American Coronary heart Affiliation (AHA). You will discover an estimate of your most coronary heart price by subtracting 220 out of your age, per the AHA.

The takeaway? Do not panic if in case you have a desk job that requires a ton of sitting. However do not throw your standing desk to the curb, both. So long as you stand up and transfer a bit all through your day, you could be positive you are doing nice issues to your general well being.