Lower life expectancy Standing in the office is as dangerous as sitting down

Study shows: Not sitting or standing affect our health but movement
Too much sitting and too little exercise should be harmful to the human body. For years it has been suggested that much sitting leads to a lower life expectancy. It did not seem to matter whether the affected person otherwise moved a lot or not. However, researchers have now found in a study that our sitting time is not related to an increased mortality risk.

Most people in Germany sit too much. Many people do their work in offices today. So it's no wonder that the average German spends most of the day sitting down.

Standing or Sitting: Both harmful to the health in the office. Picture: endostock - fotolia

Previous studies wrong: Long sitting does not increase disease risk
In recent years, several studies have suggested that daily long term sitting increases the risk of many diseases. For example, diabetes, some forms of cancer, and problems with the cardiovascular system have been linked to over-sitting. Sport and other movements did not seem to be able to compensate for this. Employers responded to these results by installing standing desks or height-adjustable desks in many offices. Workers should be motivated by this measure to stand up more. This should prevent health problems and diseases.

This should mean that a previous death is prevented by lack of movement. The results of the new study, it is now doubtful if high tables are really useful to avert health problems. In the future, doctors should be cautious about prematurely associating early death with too much sitting. It is also important to include the degree of movement, the researchers say.

Large study shows: exercise is still the best protection for health
Researchers have now discovered in a large study that sitting, whether at work or at home, is not associated with an increased risk of dying earlier. In the largest cohort study to date, just under 5,100 participants were monitored and monitored over a period of 16 years. To this end, 3,720 men and 1,412 women provided researchers with information about their weekly sitting time. Since 1985, habits and health of all 35- to 55-year-old subjects have been recorded. For example, it was recorded how much time the subjects spend each week sitting at work, in the car or in their spare time. Dr. Melvyn Hillsdon of the University of Exeter and his colleagues found that although 450 subjects died in the course of the so-called "Whitehall II study" but no direct correlation between the sitting habits and the risk of death of study participants existed. However, there was a special feature in the study group. Many of the subjects averaged about 43 minutes longer on average than other average Britons a day, the researchers said in the International Journal of Epidemiology..

Based on these facts, it became clear that exercise can protect human health from the effects of constant long sitting. The physician Dr. Hillsdon added that any resting position where energy was low could be detrimental to health, whether sitting or standing.

Processing of sugar in the body changes by sitting, standing or walking
The results of the study did not reveal how long sitting affects the metabolic processes in the body. Other studies had previously dealt with this topic. It was clear from this that the way in which sugar is utilized in the body differs. This depends on whether the person is sitting, standing or moving. Future research will show if there is a relationship between long-term sitting and heart disease or type II diabetes.

Healthy eating and exercise enable a longer life
Conclusion: If you sit a lot should also move a lot. In small breaks or other interruptions, activities such as getting up, walking or climbing stairs should be interrupted for a long time. Not long sitting shortens our lives. Rather, people should be careful to move more and eat healthy and balanced. Overweight and stress should also be avoided to avoid unnecessary risks. Who takes all these factors into account fulfills the most important requirements for enjoying one's life as long and healthy as possible.