4 ms·

If standing desks ever take off, I wonder if we'll eventually face news articles with titles like: "Standing for hours can shave years off life"...

aquark 15y ago
Fortunately with a desk that goes up and down that is an easy one to fix ... someone just needs to do a study of the ideal proportion time and frequency for changing between sitting and standing.
- RyanMcGreal 15y ago
  I fear the real issue is inaction, not position.
  - eru 15y ago
    Even if you don't move much, standing needs more muscles just to hold you in place that sitting. (Sitting also needs a few.)
drewr 15y ago
I've tried both extensively and the conclusion I've reached is that staying in one position, standing or sitting, for many hours is the real culprit. The only real cure to sedentariness (which is probably what really shaves off lifespan) is to be as mobile as possible.
- shasta 15y ago
  This is anecdotal, but in my experience I'm equally likely to die after sitting or standing.
  - vacri 15y ago
    Depending on who you listen to politically, you might die kneeling!
  - fezzl 15y ago
    ...since the likelihood of you dying is invariably 1.
    - shasta 15y ago
      In my experience it's zero.
btilly 15y ago
If standing desks ever take off, I wonder if we'll eventually face news articles with titles like: "Standing for hours can shave years off life"... Very, very unlikely. The whole "exercise good, sitting kills you" thing was first noticed in England among bus drivers in 1953. There the driver and conductor were from similar socio-economic backgrounds, similar pay, etc, but one sat all day, and the other stood. Drivers died much faster than conductors. Every significant followup since has confirmed the basic conclusion. Sitting all day is not healthy for us.
- lkrubner 15y ago
  Correct. Nothing in the last 60 years has undermined the basic conclusion: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Morris http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Morris
  - gvb 15y ago
    Thanks for the link. The conclusion actually indicates standing is not sufficient, exercise is necessary. From Wikipedia, "[...] sedentary drivers of London's double-decker buses had higher rates of cardiovascular disease than the conductors who climbed the stairs" and "[Jerry Morris] performed further studies that showed slow movements such as gardening helped very little and exercise had to be more vigorous to help."
kristiandupont 15y ago
In Denmark they are everywhere. I've been consulting/freelancing for a number of years and only on very rare occasions have I not had an adjustable desk. I haven't yet heard about negative conseuences.

aquark 15y ago

Fortunately with a desk that goes up and down that is an easy one to fix ... someone just needs to do a study of the ideal proportion time and frequency for changing between sitting and standing.

RyanMcGreal 15y ago
I fear the real issue is inaction, not position.
- eru 15y ago
  Even if you don't move much, standing needs more muscles just to hold you in place that sitting. (Sitting also needs a few.)

drewr 15y ago

I've tried both extensively and the conclusion I've reached is that staying in one position, standing or sitting, for many hours is the real culprit. The only real cure to sedentariness (which is probably what really shaves off lifespan) is to be as mobile as possible.

shasta 15y ago
This is anecdotal, but in my experience I'm equally likely to die after sitting or standing.
- vacri 15y ago
  Depending on who you listen to politically, you might die kneeling!
- fezzl 15y ago
  ...since the likelihood of you dying is invariably 1.
  - shasta 15y ago
    In my experience it's zero.

btilly 15y ago

If standing desks ever take off, I wonder if we'll eventually face news articles with titles like: "Standing for hours can shave years off life"... Very, very unlikely. The whole "exercise good, sitting kills you" thing was first noticed in England among bus drivers in 1953. There the driver and conductor were from similar socio-economic backgrounds, similar pay, etc, but one sat all day, and the other stood. Drivers died much faster than conductors. Every significant followup since has confirmed the basic conclusion. Sitting all day is not healthy for us.

lkrubner 15y ago
Correct. Nothing in the last 60 years has undermined the basic conclusion: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Morris http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerry_Morris
- gvb 15y ago
  Thanks for the link. The conclusion actually indicates standing is not sufficient, exercise is necessary. From Wikipedia, "[...] sedentary drivers of London's double-decker buses had higher rates of cardiovascular disease than the conductors who climbed the stairs" and "[Jerry Morris] performed further studies that showed slow movements such as gardening helped very little and exercise had to be more vigorous to help."

kristiandupont 15y ago

In Denmark they are everywhere. I've been consulting/freelancing for a number of years and only on very rare occasions have I not had an adjustable desk. I haven't yet heard about negative conseuences.