Effectiveness of an intervention for reducing sitting time and improving health in office workers: three arm cluster RCT, 2022, Edwardson et al.

[Cheshire]

Abstract
Objectives To evaluate the effectiveness of an intervention, with and without a height adjustable desk, on daily sitting time, and to investigate the relative effectiveness of the two interventions, and the effectiveness of both interventions on physical behaviours and physical, biochemical, psychological, and work related health and performance outcomes.

Design Cluster three arm randomised controlled trial with follow-up at three and 12 months.

Setting Local government councils in Leicester, Liverpool, and Greater Manchester, UK.

Participants 78 clusters including 756 desk based employees in defined offices, departments, or teams from two councils in Leicester, three in Greater Manchester, and one in Liverpool.

Interventions Clusters were randomised to one of three conditions: the SMART Work and Life (SWAL) intervention, the SWAL intervention with a height adjustable desk (SWAL plus desk), or control (usual practice).

Main outcomes measures The primary outcome measure was daily sitting time, assessed by accelerometry, at 12 month follow-up. Secondary outcomes were accelerometer assessed sitting, prolonged sitting, standing and stepping time, and physical activity calculated over any valid day, work hours, workdays, and non-workdays, self-reported lifestyle behaviours, musculoskeletal problems, cardiometabolic health markers, work related health and performance, fatigue, and psychological measures.

Results Mean age of participants was 44.7 years, 72.4% (n=547) were women, and 74.9% (n=566) were white. Daily sitting time at 12 months was significantly lower in the intervention groups (SWAL −22.2 min/day, 95% confidence interval −38.8 to −5.7 min/day, P=0.003; SWAL plus desk −63.7 min/day, −80.1 to −47.4 min/day, P<0.001) compared with the control group. The SWAL plus desk intervention was found to be more effective than SWAL at changing sitting time (−41.7 min/day, −56.3 to −27.0 min/day, P<0.001). Favourable differences in sitting and prolonged sitting time at three and 12 month follow-ups for both intervention groups and for standing time for the SWAL plus desk group were observed during work hours and on workdays. Both intervention groups were associated with small improvements in stress, wellbeing, and vigour, and the SWAL plus desk group was associated with improvements in pain in the lower extremity, social norms for sitting and standing at work, and support.

Conclusions Both SWAL and SWAL plus desk were associated with a reduction in sitting time, although the addition of a height adjustable desk was found to be threefold more effective.

https://www.bmj.com/content/378/bmj-2021-069288

Interesting that this increased standing time is not associated with health improvement nor productivity.

Comment on the study:

 

[Mij]

I think the only benefit is that you would burn a few more calories standing.

 

[BrightCandle]

Walking is good for the back but its using the muscles, standing on the other hand in the same spot in my experience is kind of uncomfortable. The next trendy desk idea will probably be a treadmill standing desk and that might actually bring some benefits.

 

[Snow Leopard]

Walking is good for the back but its using the muscles, standing on the other hand in the same spot in my experience is kind of uncomfortable. The next trendy desk idea will probably be a treadmill standing desk and that might actually bring some benefits.

Why not a group trampoline to spice up those meetings? Or some parallel bars? Maybe a unicycle?

 

[Art Vandelay]

I think the only benefit is that you would burn a few more calories standing.

My gut feeling is that the only benefit of standing desks is to create "busy work" for Human Resources people and to generate income for the various consultants, OTs and physios who make a living from recommending these sorts of gimmicks.

 

[Mithriel]

I am sure I heard about a firm where every Friday they had a compulsory get together where they exercised as a group. They did fun things and everyone enjoyed themselves and got to know each other.

Almost 60 years ago my mother worked in a factory where everyone spent hours standing in one place. The management gave them a small grant and premises to start a social club which held dances once a month and weekly classes. These got stuck at learning Scottish country dancing because it was such fun. All us kids went along too and it was a riot aided by an old record player, a tattered book and a pile of 78s. The men appointed themselves instructors and shouted out directions.

Fun is much better for health than standing desks.