Sedentary behaviour in the workplace: prevalence, health implications and interventions

AbstractIntroductionThis paper reviews the prevalence and health risks of excess sedentary behaviour in office workers, and the effectiveness of sedentary workplace interventions in a manner accessible to practitioners.Sources of dataA narrative review of empirical studies obtained from PubMed and Web of Science.Areas of agreementOffice workers are highly sedentary, increasing their risk of health problems. Interventions using individual, organisational and environmental level strategies can be effective for reducing workplace sitting.Areas of controversyThe effects of sedentary workplace interventions on health are inconsistent. This may be due to a lack of randomized controlled trials powered to detect changes in health outcomes.Growing pointsMulticomponent interventions that use a combination of the strategies above may be the most effective for reducing sitting.Areas timely for developing researchDetermining the long-term health and cost-effectiveness of sedentary workplace interventions is a priority to encourage employer buy-in for their implementation.
Source: British Medical Bulletin - Category: General Medicine Source Type: research