Walking around can cut waistline and body mass index

The researchers then used a statistical technique called isotemporal analysis to estimate the potential impact on health of reallocating time from sitting to standing or stepping.

After giving blood samples and measurement of their blood pressure, weight, height and waist circumference, participants each wore an activity monitor on their thigh for about 24 hours a day over a seven-day period.

They said employers should set a “daily quota” in which their staff should stand, initially for two hours a day, but in time bumped up to four hours. However, sitting down for a long period of time can be damaging to our health in the long run.

“We found that time spent standing rather than sitting was significantly associated with lower levels of blood sugar and blood fats”, said study leader Dr. Genevieve Healy, senior research fellow at the University of Queensland in Australia.

There are people who need to sit down while at work because it is harder to work on your computer standing up, for example.

The results have led to astounding conclusions that discovered people who spent less time of their day standing instead of sitting, have greater health benefits.

An even better replacement for sitting was “stepping”. Furthermore, the study showed that the shift was also associated with lower blood sugar levels (by about 11 percent) and lower triglycerides (by about 14 percent). It raises cholesterol levels and blood sugar levels, and makes people vulnerable to developing type 2 diabetes or heart disease. The monitors closely tracked how much time each volunteer was sleeping, sitting, lying down, standing and stepping.

It is now clear that standing rather than sitting at your desk improves your health so get over your laziness and let your feet hold the weight of your body, in order to have all those inner processes working properly.

Prolonged sitting is associated with increased cardiovascular problems. “Our message is to “Stand Up, Sit Less, Move More”. They were given an activity monitor for one week. It was revealed that it improves blood sugar, fat and cholesterol levels. “Standing is a simple alternative to sitting, and requires further examination in prospective and intervention studies”.

“National guidelines state we should reduce the time we spend sitting and this study adds to the increasing amount of evidence to support this”, she said.

It has been well documented that sitting only increases a sedentary person’s waistline, and this study confirms those earlier findings.

In an editorial published with the study, Francisco Lopez-Jimenez of the Mayo College of Medicine in Minnesota, said it showed that “the fight against sedentary behaviour can not be won based only on the promotion of regular exercise”.