Prof Barry Taylor, dean of the University of Otago Dunedin School of Medicine, is taking something of a stand over sitting.
For the past four years, Prof Taylor has used a ''standing desk'' when undertaking much of his medical research.
Since becoming dean early this year, he has spent much of his time attending meetings.
Recently, many of the longer meetings in his office have involved standing or ''perching'' participants, as he has sought to increase physical activity in response to research findings highlighting the health risks of extended periods of sedentary office work.
After gaining ethics committee approval, Prof Taylor is undertaking a randomised control trial of the effectiveness of meetings involving more physical activity, and how participants respond to them.
Over the past two months, he had attended 79 meetings, which have been randomly assigned to sitting, standing or ''perching'', he said.
''Perching'' involves a mixture of sitting and standing, with the person's bodyweight carried partly by a fairly tall adjustable stool, but also by their legs on the ground.
At a research symposium at the University of Otago School of Physiotherapy yesterday, Prof Taylor gave a talk titled ''Research on the run'', and outlined his approach to increasing physical activity at work.
Extended periods of sitting at work had been linked to higher overall mortality risks, as well as increased risks of some forms of cancer, cardiovascular problems and adult-onset diabetes, he said.
The symposium, attended by about 40 people, was hosted by the school's collaborative Centre for Health, Activity, and Rehabilitation Research.
A recent Australian study noted sedentary behaviour was ''emerging as an important risk factor for poor health and for mortality''.
This Perth-based study involving 50 office workers found sedentary time amounted to 81.8% of work hours, was significantly higher than sedentary time in non-work hours (about 69%).
Prof Taylor said he felt ''much more mobile'' when he was standing at meetings, and liked the ''freedom'' to move round a bit.
Commenting further in an interview, he predicted some office arrangements were ''going to change'' because of the impact of research highlighting the risks of sedentary work.
''I think in the future we'll have different offices,'' he said.
He had already noticed some Otago academics who were well aware of the latest health research in the field had switched to standing desks.
Prof David Baxter, dean of the School of Physiotherapy, said it was important for office workers to find ways to increase physical activity levels at work, including by more standing, and by using the stairs more often.
Long periods of uninterrupted sitting were independently linked to adverse health outcomes, even when office workers undertook vigorous activity, such as running, during lunch breaks, Prof Baxter said.
The facts
Advantages in avoiding too much sitting at work. -
• Long periods spent sitting are emerging as ''an important risk factor for poor health and for mortality''.
• Sedentary work linked with significantly higher rates of some forms of cancer, and higher risk of adult-onset diabetes and cardiovascular problems.
• Long periods of sitting at work are believed to have adverse effects on health, even if vigorous exercise is undertaken during a lunch break.
• Frequent standing at work contributes to burning more kilojoules per hour than sitting, potentially somewhat reducing body weight over a year.
• Use of standing desks apparently results in less fatigue than sitting, and less sitting is also associated with reduced reporting of lower back pain.
