Standing desks can improve swollen veins and blood clots danger | UK | News | EUROtoday

Standing desks don’t compensate for being inactive and will improve the danger of growing situations similar to swollen veins and blood clots within the legs, scientists have warned. The workplace set-up has turn out to be standard lately and is commonly seen as a solution to scale back the well being dangers related to sitting all day at a pc.

But a brand new research of greater than 80,000 UK adults discovered that standing doesn’t scale back the danger of illnesses similar to stroke and coronary heart failure, regardless of the extensively held perception that it does. It additionally discovered that being on one’s toes for greater than two hours a day might put individuals at greater danger of growing issues similar to deep vein thrombosis – blood clots that type deep inside veins – and varicose veins – enlarged and twisted veins beneath the pores and skin.

Based on their findings, printed within the International Journal of Epidemiology, researchers mentioned individuals who sit or stand for lengthy durations ought to schedule common motion all through the day. Dr Matthew Ahmadi, of the University of Sydney’s Faculty of Medicine and Health in Australia, mentioned: “The key takeaway is that standing for too long will not offset an otherwise sedentary lifestyle and could be risky for some people in terms of circulatory health.

“We found that standing more does not improve cardiovascular health over the long-term and increases the risk of circulatory issues.”

Previous analysis by Dr Ahmadi and his staff discovered vigorously exercising for six minutes a day can assist decrease the danger of coronary heart illness, even in individuals who had been sitting for greater than 11 hours a day. To perceive if standing supplied any well being advantages, the researchers checked out knowledge from 83,013 adults who’re a part of the UK Biobank, a database which holds well being and way of life information of greater than half-a-million Britons.

These individuals didn’t have coronary heart illness in the beginning of the research and wore units on their wrists to trace motion. The staff discovered that for each further half-hour spent standing past two hours, the danger of circulatory illness elevated by 11%.

The researchers mentioned standing was not discovered to cut back danger of coronary heart situations similar to stroke, coronary heart failure and coronary coronary heart illness (the place the center’s arteries are narrowed or blocked). Meanwhile, when time spent sitting exceeded 12 hours a day, it was related to a 15% improve in coronary heart illness danger for every further hour of sitting, the findings confirmed.

Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, director of the Mackenzie Wearables Research Hub on the University of Sydney, mentioned: “For people who sit for long periods on a regular basis, including plenty of incidental movement throughout the day and structured exercise may be a better way to reduce the risk of cardiovascular disease.

“Take regular breaks, walk around, go for a walking meeting, use the stairs, take regular breaks when driving long distances, or use that lunch hour to get away from the desk and do some movement.”

Commenting on the research, Emily McGrath, senior cardiac nurse on the British Heart Foundation, who was not concerned, mentioned: “This research emphasises the importance of getting up and active during the day.

“The more people can avoid being stationary, the better. Over the long-term, the study showed that standing time was not associated with an increased risk of cardiovascular disease, however it did have other circulatory health implications for some.

“It is important to get active to reduce this risk. Aim for 150 minutes of moderate activity, like brisk walking, cycling or swimming, per week to reduce your risk of heart and circulatory disease.

“This will help manage your weight, promote better sleep, boost energy, reduce your stress and lower your blood pressure and cholesterol levels.”