Is standing at your desk all day better for your health than sitting down?

MILLIONS of people stand at work all day, but most office workers sit at their desk.

Our sedentary lifestyles are being blamed for a whole host of problems from backache to bulging waistlines.

Back pain prompted two York bosses to introduce "standing desks" in their office. Now one fifth of the staff at Isotoma in York are following suit - reaping their own health benefits. They expect more to follow suit.

So what's it like, standing at your desk all day? And is it really that good for you?

Doug's story

Doug Winter was the first in the York office to take the plunge and has been using a standing desk for two years.

He suffered from chronic back pain, which was always made worse by sitting. He read a lot online about the benefits of standing desks before taking the plunge.

He said: "There were some fantastic claims about how dangerous sitting was supposed to be - taking seven years off your life. I'm not sure whether that is true or not but it prompted me to look into it."

Doug's desk is motorised, so that it can be adjusted to any height - including for when sitting in a chair. "It's really nice to have that variety," he says.

When he first started, he suffered back ache - but a different sort from what plagued him before.

"I just felt stiff, like I'd been standing at a checkout all day. It took six months for my muscles to get used to it and get stronger. My posture improved a lot too. Poor posture is one of the things associated with back problems."

And he has found that colleagues want to have a go too.

"Since I have been doing it, we have had other people starting. We now have five people standing at their desks and there are 26 people working here."

He says it's a simple way to make yourself more active. "Since we moved offices, we have no parking here so a lot of us cycle or walk to work. When you cycle or walk to work then stand up all day it's probably worth a gym session. It makes you feel stronger and burn more calories. I feel a lot fitter."

And his back trouble is gone. Ordinarily, it would flare up once or twice a year, causing him to take a few days off work.

A motorised desk costs £500, but he sees it as an investment. "Our staff are quite high value. If we lose somebody for a one or two days that is quite expensive for us, so anything we can do to help people's health is economical."

ABOVE: Andy Theyers of Isotoma and the trial desks using items from Ikea

Andy's story

Andy Theyers followed Doug's example nine months ago. He had suffered from a bad back and was recovering from surgery on a slipped disc. He blames his lower back problems on sitting at a desk for all his adult life.

He first attempted to stand at his desk two years ago but ended up with pain in his hips. His latest attempt has been more successful and he puts that down to the use of a "Steppie", a wobble board that he stands on - which has a curved, unstable, base.

"This really helps because it forces you to move," says Andy. "When you stand you tend to lock your knees and hips. If you are on something like this, you are moving around all the time and it stops the knees and hips from locking up."

Andy now probably spends four or five hours a day standing at his motorised desk, and sits for the rest of the time.

Before the company invested in the special desk, Andy tried a make-shift one for a few months. You don't have to spend a fortune to have a go, he insists. People can set themselves up for as little as £50 using some coffee table desks and a shelf from Ikea (there's a blog post on how to do this at Isotoma.com).

Company policy is now for staff to try the DIY version for three months before they will invest in the more expensive, ergonomic kit. So far, everyone who has done the trial has converted to standing.

"It is very contagious," says Andy. "People do like it."

Richard's story

Isotoma project director Richard Newton suffers from arthritis and has been using a standing desk for nine months.

He says the combination of walking to work and standing all day helps his symptoms. "I want to make sure I'm not decrepit at 60 so I want to make sure I stay active. It's easy to get into sedentary habits."

He uses a Steppie, which stops pain in his knees and ankles when standing for long spells.

"With the Steppie you keep moving so you don't develop any pain. I find myself playing with it, like it is a surfboard. It's nice when I have music on my headphones and I can rock about on the Steppie board."

Richard is so converted to standing while working, he now does the same at home. He said: "If I am working from home I find myself working at the island in the kitchen."

The expert's view

The NHS says there is increasing evidence linking excessive sitting with being obese, type-2 diabetes, some types of cancer, and premature death, but new research now casts doubt on this.

Researchers at Exeter University and University College London followed more than 5,000 people over a 16-year period and found that any stationary posture where energy expenditure is low may be detrimental to health, be it sitting or standing.

TAKE A BREAK: Tuina therapist Errol Lynch advises people to move around every 30 minutes, whether sitting or standing at work

Errol Lynch is a physical therapist trained in sports therapy who runs Touch Tuina massage treatment centres in York and London.

He says both sitting and standing present health problems.

"Being seated presents lumbar pain and neck pain mainly, as well as digestive issues.

"In our clinic, we treat many professionals who stand for a living such as hairdressers and teachers and their common complaints are neck, shoulder, lumbar and calf discomfort.

"If the posture of the person is good, the issues are less."

He adds: "The main advice we give besides coming for regular treatments is to limit the time being seated and to set an alarm at 30 minute intervals. Walk around and do the same exercise as they give you on planes to increase your circulation."