7 Benefits of Standing Desks

More and more studies are showing the amazing benefits of standing desks. It has been long known that sitting for long periods of time attribute to bad health with symptoms such as diabetes, heart disease and early death. Sitting also burns a considerably low amount of calories and leads to weight gain which in turn leads to other health issues.

Luckily, more and more businesses are thinking about their workings and implementing better workplace ergonomics such as installing standing desks. Standing desks are one of the most ideal ergonomic items for an office as they correct the most amount of issues in one go. They are called many things other than a standing desk such as sit-stand desk, a life saver, or a desk converter.

Below we will outline the top 7 benefits of a standing desk and why more and more offices should look to them.

1. Weight gain has long been known to be caused when you are taking in more calories than what your body burns, so it makes sense that if you burn more calories than you eat that would equate to weight loss. The best solution for this is exercise but taking small actions throughout the day will over time help in the weight loss game. It has been shown that by just standing at your desk each afternoon you can burn an extra 1000 each week!

2. Blood sugar levels increase after meals as the body breaks down the food that has just been eaten. Because of this, it is especially bad for your health when one goes back to their office and sits at their desk for the rest of their day after they have had their lunch meal. Small studies have shown that just standing for 180 minutes after lunch reduce blood sugar spikes by 43% versus those who sit. In the study, the only difference between the workers was the fact that some were standing and the others were not. Alternating between sitting and standing every 30 minutes throughout the day has shown to reduce the spike by an average of 11%.

3. Is it widely accepted that the more time you spend sitting, the greater your risk of developing heart disease. A study done on bus conductors showed that those that stood all day had half the risk of heart disease-related deaths compared to their colleagues who were in the driver's seat all day. Even an hour of intense exercise may not undo the negative effects of an entire day spent sitting.

4. Reduced back pain has been reported by 32% of participants who took part in a study of employees with previous back pain. A published study by the CDC found that sit-stand desk improved upper back and neck pain by 54% after just 4 weeks of usage. Several studies done show that standing desks dramatically decrease chronic back pain caused by prolonged sitting.

5. Electric Standing desks appear to have a positive influence on mood and energy levels. In a study lasting 7-weeks, it was reported that participants had less stress and fatigue compared to their counterparts who sat all day. They also reported that 87% of participants mentioned increased vigor and energy. Bottom line is that research showed sitting and mental health are aligned with those sitting more often had an increased risk of both depression and anxiety.

6. It is common knowledge that if a person is comfortable at work they become more productive compared to them in discomfort. Standing has been proven to improve mood and energy levels which equals to a boost in productivity with no negative impact to typical work tasks.

7. With all the studies showing how standing for just a few hours a day improves the general health of a typical person, it is safe to say that standing may help you live longer. Bottom line is that many researchers suggest sitting for a reduced amount of time may lower your risk of dying early and therefore help you live longer.