Office workers are reminded to stand up and walk around the office, as new research finds that those who don’t can have weight problems.
A study carried out by Loughborough University has found that many people who work in serviced and shared offices simply forget to stand up throughout the day.
This can lead to prolonged periods sat at a desk with many people not moving for five hours and 41 minutes on average.
Less social interaction and the need to walk across the office has been put down to the use of email and chat devices, but could lead to health problems.
Prolonged periods of sitting at work often mean office staff do the same at home, which means a less active lifestyle has an impact on health and weight, the study also found.
Dr Myanna Duncan, from Loughborough University, said: “We’re looking at an ageing population, working later in to their lives. To work later you need to be healthy.”
Getting up and moving around can be as simple as talking to a colleague about a task or going to make a cup of tea, but all these things help to break up periods of sitting.
The study, which took 1,000 office workers into account across several different office -based occupations, found that some staff sit for a similar amount of time as they sleep.
Dr Duncan said: “People don’t need a psychologist to tell them to get up and walk around. But if it helps, I’d tell them to put a post-it note on their computer to remind them.”
The health of office workers has been under further scrutiny recently, as separate research has found that many bored workers turn to coffee, chocolate and alcohol to get them through a dull working week.
