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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.
One in Eight Kids Don't Play Outside
A new report by Natural England has revealed a 13th of our young population don’t venture outside to play. Nearly 5,400 children were surveyed and only 17% had visited a beach. We have written about the ever growing popularity of beach schools who actively combat this figure but it’s clear that physical literacy and going outside is becoming obsolete in the face of increasing sedentary behaviour and screen time which has been linked to increased rates of depression in young people.
Active students perform better according to research.
This news hits amidst the backdrop of quickly escalating childhood obesity numbers and notable 5 year reductions in our children’s expected lifespans.
Unsurprisingly 67% of children believe “being in nature makes me happy”
It has also come to light from the report that whilst these figures are depressingly low they are higher than the amount of outdoor time spent by our nation’s adults. Economic factors also effect the results with 10% less poorer family’s getting outdoor time compared to more affluent families.
UK Active this week published a news report detailing that university students who engage in physical activity experience improved mental health and feel they are more employable and perform better. Physically active children were monitored and they experience a 16% improvement in productivity against inactive children. So the stats all point to better physical health aiding better mental health and clear cut improvement in academic results.
Not surprising really when you consider that the same part of the brain which manages movement also manages executive function and learning. There has been a bidirectional study in adults which shows a robust connection between activity and improved executive function.
In longitudinal multilevel models low levels of physical activity led to subsequent declines in executive function.
Now let put this in basic English;
- Adults who are active demonstrate sharper thinking. When you stop moving your thought processes slow down.
- University students who exercise believe they are more employable, happier and perform better.
- Children at school level are less productive and becoming depressed due to an increase in screen time and decrease in exercise and outdoor time.
Schools can combat the tide of sedentary culture in their classrooms and give their students an edge by building physical literacy into the classroom and integrating standing desks to normalise movement for our young people. Other standing schools are reaping the benefit of students with flexible seating. Their pupils are proven to participate more and become more productive in the process.
Physically literate children become active adults, perhaps the more active ones will get those 5 years back from their expected lifespans and retain their sharp thinking. This writer believes it’s our duty of care to help them achieve this.
Do you want to trial student standing desks in your classrooms? Click here
Sharp Rise in Obesity Related Cancers in Younger People
Laura Donnelly of the Telegraph has reported on a study by The American Cancer Society which shows a sharp upturn in obesity related cancer instances in younger people. The study used data from half the population of the USA over a 9 year period to conclude that whilst cancer is seen as a disease of the elderly that obesity related cancers have increased dramatically in the focus group of 25 to 29 whilst other cancers either declined or remained the same.
British experts have warned that this might reflect a similar threat the UK population as our obesity rates are growing much faster than in the states. The UK's obesity rates have risen a startling 92% since 1991.
"For example, while annual rates of bowel cancer fell by 3.65 per cent in those aged 80 to 84, and by 2.96 per cent, in those aged 60 to 64, they rose by 2.41 per cent in those aged 25 to 29, and by 2.38 per cent in those aged 30 to 34." wrote Laura Donnelly.
The overarching concerns are that these disturbing increase in cancer rates due to obesity could completely negate our advancements in the NHS's ability to combat cancer. Experts who undertook the study have warned that screening for obesity is their recommended solve for this which would be very much inline the NHS new take on preventative healthcare.
Lead author Dr Hyuna Sung said “More than half of adults who were 20 to 49 years old between 2010 to 2012 reported poor dietary habits, such as eating little fruit, vegetables, whole grains, fish and shellfish at the same time as eating too much salt, fast food, and sugary drinks”
Recent reports have shown that 2.3 million kids are inactive and that physical literacy in the classroom is imperative to ensure the next generation grows up in touch with their own health needs and used to moving.
70 million young children will be overweight or obese by 2025 if current trends continue according to the Childhood Obesity Foundation.
Flexible seating is imperative to schools adopting a culture of activity and increasing their pupil’s movement levels. Student Standing Desk Trials for classrooms are available here.
On Topic: Childhood obesity rates soaring
Get Involved! Next week is Children's Mental Health Week (4-10 February)
Next week is Children's Mental Health Week and the theme of the year is to be Healthy: Inside and Out. Looking after bodies and minds is a message very much in keeping with the benefits UK schools report back to us they experience with classroom standing desks.
Pupils actively look forward to classes with flexible seating options and can move more freely and express themselves confidently. Active pupils are reportedly more productive and more likely to engage the lesson. Good mental health we believe is essential to fostering an environment suitable for learning and allowing our children to be well rounded and happy. READ THE FULL STORY HERE
MacDonald’s Being Delivered to Schools Amid Childhood Diabetes Crisis
SUMMARY: MacDonalds are being delivered to schools despite the anti-obesity ban amid the backdrop of a Birmingham Child Type 2 Diabetes epidemic undermining headmasters efforts to inject healthy culture into schools. READ THE FULL ARTICLE HERE.
Bringing Physical Literacy Into The Classroom With Student Standing Desks
Recent reports showed our children’s lives are now expected to last 5 years less due to the growing childhood obesity epidemic. One notion gaining currency as part of the solution and increasingly adopted by mindful teachers as a method of injecting a cultural shift their classrooms. Physical Literacy.Physical literacy is the ability, balance, confidence, desire and exploratory nature to live an active, healthy life. Student Standing desks can be used to integrate physical literacy at minimal effort.