What standing too much means for heart health

This work-from-home staple ensures you’re not sitting down for much of the day – which we’ve heard a million times can lead to things like poor heart health. Or so we think.

one new research¹ Posted yesterday in international journal of epidemiology Standing desk recommended No It can actually reduce the risk of conditions like stroke and heart failure.

Take a closer look at this new study

The study included more than 80,000 healthy adults from the UK. For two years, participants wore wrist accelerometers to record the time they spent sitting and standing.

When researchers evaluated the data and followed them for up to six years, they found that sitting for more than 10 hours a day was associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease. Even more surprising? Standing more (compared to sitting) does not reduce the risk of heart disease, stroke and heart failure. Additionally, standing for longer periods of time actually increases the risk of varicose veins (enlarged veins) and deep vein thrombosis (blood clots in the veins).

Standing more often does not reduce the risk of conditions such as heart disease, stroke and heart failure.

More specifically, for every 30 minutes spent standing for more than two hours, the risk of these health problems increased by 11 percent. (It’s worth noting that study participants did not use standing desks “exclusively” to measure the health effects of increased standing.)

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There are some things to keep in mind. First, this is an observational study, which means it shows correlation, not causation. In other words, it finds a connect Standing too much increases the risk of poor heart health. This does not mean that if you stand too much, you will definitely develop heart disease in the future.

In addition, this study also drew from data from UK Biobank. The UK Biobank is a repository and research resource that stores medical and genetic information on 500,000 UK participants for use in studies like this study. However, according to a 2017 report, UK Biobank volunteers had no previous health problems and did not accurately represent the majority of the population American Journal of Epidemiology article².

bottom line

“The key point is that standing for too long does not counteract a sedentary lifestyle and may be detrimental to circulatory health in some people,” said Matthew Ahmadi, a postdoctoral researcher at the University of Sydney and lead author of the study. constitute a risk.

Ahmadi and his fellow researchers suggest that you should plan regular exercise throughout your day, rather than standing most of the day.

“Take regular breaks, move around, attend walking meetings, use the stairs, take regular breaks on long drives, or use your lunch break to get away from your desk and get some exercise,” Ahmadi says.

These are often called “exercise breaks” or “exercise snacks.” You can even “microdose” fitness by taking a quick stretch break, doing a short cardio session, doing a few squats while waiting for your coffee to brew, or even completing some household chores (because cleaning the bathroom is a big deal) ). serious exercise!

If you have more time in the day, Study in 2024³ exist International Journal of Behavioral Nutrition and Physical Activity Research has found that about 6 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise or 30 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous exercise a day can help reduce the risk of heart disease, even if you sit for 11 hours or more a day.

FYI: According to the American Heart Association (AHA), vigorous exercise is exercise that reaches 70 to 85 percent of your maximum heart rate, and moderate exercise is exercise that reaches 50 to 70 percent of your maximum heart rate. According to the AHA, you can estimate your maximum heart rate by subtracting 220 from your age.

takeout? If you have a desk job that requires you to sit for long periods of time, don’t panic. But don’t throw your standing desk to the curb either. Just by getting up and moving throughout the day, you can be sure that you’re making a huge contribution to your overall health.