What Standing Too Much Might Mean for Your Heart Health

This WFH staple ensures you do not spend nearly all of your day sitting—which we have heard 1,000,000 instances can lead to conditions like poor coronary heart well being down the road. Or so we thought.

A new study¹ revealed yesterday in The Worldwide Journal of Epidemiology suggests standing desks do not really cut back your threat of ailments like stroke and coronary heart failure.

A better have a look at the brand new examine

The examine included over 80,000 wholesome adults from the UK. For 2 years, contributors 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 threat of heart problems. Extra shocking? Standing extra (in contrast with sitting) would not cut back the danger of coronary heart situations like coronary heart illness, stroke, and coronary heart failure. Moreover, standing extra might really enhance your threat of varicose veins (enlarged veins) and deep vein thrombosis (a blood clot in your veins).

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

Extra particularly, for each half-hour spent standing past two hours, the danger of those well being points elevated by 11 p.c. (It is value noting that examine contributors 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 remember. First, that is an observational examine, which implies it is displaying correlation—not causation. In different phrases, it discovered a connection between standing an excessive amount of and an elevated threat of poor coronary heart well being. This doesn’t suggest you are assured to develop a coronary heart situation sooner or later if you happen to stand an excessive amount of.

Moreover, this examine attracts from UK Biobank knowledge. The UK Biobank is a database and analysis useful resource that shops the medical and genetic information of 500,000 UK contributors for analysis identical to this examine. Nonetheless, UK Biobank volunteers don’t have any earlier medical points and are not an correct illustration of nearly all of individuals, in response to 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 way of life and may very well be dangerous for some individuals by way of circulatory well being,” mentioned Matthew Ahmadi, a postdoctoral analysis fellow on the College of Sydney and lead examine writer, in a press release.

As an alternative of standing for a majority of your day, Ahmadi and his fellow researchers recommend it is best to 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 “exercise breaks” or “train snacks.” You could possibly even “microdose” fitness by taking fast stretch breaks, doing brief cardio bursts, busting out just a few squats whilst 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 study³ within the Worldwide Journal of Behavioral Diet and Bodily Exercise discovered that about six minutes of vigorous-intensity train or half-hour of moderate-to-vigorous train per day might assist decrease your threat of coronary heart illness—even if you happen to’re largely sedentary 11 hours a day or extra.

FYI: Vigorous train is something that is 70 to 85 p.c of your most heart rate and reasonable train is something that will get you to 50 to 70 p.c of your most coronary heart price, in response to the American Heart Association (AHA). Yow 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 when 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 rise up and transfer a bit all through your day, you may be certain you are doing nice issues to your general well being.