People who stand for at least six hours a day are less likely to turn obese, a new health study suggests.
A team of researchers from The Cooper Institute, the University of Texas and the University of Georgia have found that standing for at least one-quarter of the day reduces the risk of obesity, reported EurekAlert.
The research team, led by Dr Kerem Shuval, Director of Physical Activity & Nutrition Research at the American Cancer Society, examined reported standing habits in relation to objectively measured obesity and metabolic risk among more than 7,000 adult patients receiving preventive medicine care at Cooper Clinic in Texas from 2010 to 2015.
For the first part of the study, the participants were asked a number of fitness related questions like "For those activities that you do most days of the week (such as work, school, and housework), how much time do you spend standing?"
The answers were categorized into five categories -almost all of the time; approximately three-quarters of the time; approximately half of the time; approximately one-quarter of the time; almost none of the time.
In the second part of the study, the participants' body mass index (BMI), body fat percentage and waist circumference were measured and it was checked whether they had metabolic syndrome (a cluster of symptoms that includes high blood pressure or elevated blood sugar).
The study found that in men, standing for at least one-quarter of the day reduced the risk obesity by 32 percent, while standing half the time reduced the risk by 59 percent. Interestingly, standing for more than three-quarters of the time was not associated with a lower risk of obesity in men.
In women, standing a quarter, half, and three-quarter was associated with 35 percent, 47 percent and 57 percent respective reductions in obesity. No association between standing and metabolic syndrome was found among men or women.
Researchers also found that 150 minutes of moderate exercise and/or 75 minutes of vigorous activity per day in combination with standing further reduced obesity risk in both men and women, reported UniversityHerald.
Based on the results of the study, "clinicians and public health practitioners should consider encouraging patients to achieve the physical activity guidelines and increase standing time for chronic disease prevention," said Kerem Shuval.
However, the researchers noted that additional prospective studies are necessary to determine whether standing has protective health benefits.
The study appears in the journal Mayo Clinic Proceedings.
