Sitting Kills 1 in 10 of Us
A recent study featured in the Journal of Epidemiology and Community Health has linked sitting for extended periods of time to approximately one in ten deaths each year in the UK.
Speaking of modern day workplaces the lead author said they “represented a significant proportion of unavoidable daily sitting time for many people”.
A recent article on the REBA website explains how in 2016/17 1.3 million people suffered from work related ill-health which according to government guidance translates into 25.7 million working days lost affecting business on the whole to the tune of £32 Billion a year.
Research shows happier, healthier people are more productive. This counts for students in education who when standing engage 16% more and office workers who when happy are more productive by a whopping 31%. Research by Talent Works International shows 10 times fewer sick days are taken by happy employees.
Healthy work-spaces and mental and physical health being seen as a top priority helps businesses attract and retain employees and shows that education spaces prioritise physical and mental well-being of their students which can attract new starters as more and more parents are keen to ensure their children are staying healthy in the classroom environment. Some parents even going as far as to urge schools to go entirely standing.
Sedentary behaviour is responsible for a multitude of illnesses and has caused our children’s estimated lifespans to be 5 years shorter. There is a proven relationship between inactivity and cancers, heart disease, stroke and diabetes. The NHS is expected to buckle under increasingly accelerating stress if measures aren’t put in place by the government to tackle obesity and sedentary culture in the UK population. Efforts such as the governments proposed School Sport and Activity Action Plan aim to improve physical health culture in young people by keeping schools open for summer holiday sports sessions and more.
The government's cycle to work scheme is estimated to have saved the NHS over £5 billion as a result of participants being healthier and less likely to require treatments. Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson, chair of UKActive is calling for a nationwide cultural shift encouraged and supported by the government and to be embraced by all businesses in order to affect the nation’s health and our businesses bottom lines.
Baroness Tanni Grey-Thompson
If you are interested in workplace well-being programs you can visit UKActive to find out more. Schools wanting to introduce standing desks to their learning spaces can sign up to a try before you buy trial here.
Source: Tanni Grey-Thompson on the need to combine efforts to tackle sedentary workplace cultures.
In other News I want A Standing Desk has been featured by Feedspots Top 50 Education Blogs here. So thank you for the shout out Feedspot and thanks to our readers for your support.