The Pros And Cons Of Sitting Desks 2024

Table of Contents

Introduction To The Pros And Cons Of Sitting Desks

An average worker spends up to 75% of his day in a reclining or sitting position. Sitting desks are available in all the offices, companies and even at homes. People started having sitting desks at home even before the outbreak of the pandemic.

The work pressure is high for some, and people choose to have a sitting desk at home where they will be able to work efficiently and comfortably from home anytime they desire.

Sitting desks can be comfortable and affordable, but it holds pros and cons to it. It is not something new. Everything in the world has pros and cons. We will read about the pros and cons of the sitting desks further in our content.

Do you belong to that group of people who use sitting desks at home or in the workplace? How is the experience? Is it comfortable? Some sitting desks are comfortable, some not.

The height of the sitting desk, size, and sometimes its colour play an essential role for the person who utilizes the sitting desk. Although the objects may not fit on the sitting desk if it is small, the colour can psychologically connect to the user's likes and dislikes and even mood.

And finally, the height of the sitting desk can cause pain in the back and neck if it is not according to the height of the person sitting behind the sitting desk. This is because sitting desks mean that the person behind the desk is sitting for an extended period.

Is sitting for long good? Can you sit for an extended period motionlessly and work? Then, bear with us till we highlight specific facts for you further in the content.

In this article, we will cover the pros and cons of sitting desks and what to do if we have to work at a desk for any length of time.

Is There Any Risk of Sitting for a Long Time?

When an individual sits, he or she uses less energy as compared to standing. However, according to the research directly linked with sitting, health issues are raising when you sit for an extended period.

Some of the health issues related to sitting behind the sitting desk for an extended period of time are obesity and a cluster of conditions such as increased blood pressure, high blood sugar, excess fat stored around the waist, and abnormal cholesterol levels.

Sitting at a sitting desk for an extended period also increases the risk of death from cancer and, finally, cardiovascular diseases.

Any extended sitting behind the sitting desk or the wheels can harm you and your body, even in front of the screen. Keeping all these health issues aside, sitting too much can also be dangerous for your mental health.

Can You Do Anything If You Have No Other Option but to Be On Sitting Desk?

If you are bound to be at the sitting desk for eight working hours every day, or worse if you still have to work at home at the same sitting desk, you can still do certain things to keep yourself at least at lesser risks.

You can do the following to avoid harming yourself.

Make sure you take frequent breaks. For example, walk or stand up after you feel you have been sitting for a long time. This way, you will create a vibrant work atmosphere for yourself and avoid sitting at sitting desks too long.
Install certain apps that will remind and prompt you to walk or move while you have spent a long time behind the sitting desk. This process will help you be healthier than those pinned at the chair behind the sitting desk throughout working hours. Luckily the smartwatches have this feature in them. Utilize it.
Try not to do all the work at once consistently. Keep breaks between them. Sitting on the sitting desks always and not moving can be bad for your back and neck. Make sure you utilize the breaks nicely.
Keep your feet at a 90-degree angle. It will help you to support your feet on the floor and will provide rest to your feet.
Make sure your head is not leaned forward. The head should always be over your shoulders.
Stretch during your work as you are on the sitting desk. Stretching will help you to relax a bit.

Simple and easy steps, yet they are very effective. Sitting desks can even make the individual lazier. You may feel tired and bored the entire day than the one who stands and walks throughout the work.

Why Spending Too Much Time Behind Sitting Desks Is Bad?

Apart from the points stated earlier, there are about twelve serious cons regarding the long time you spent sitting behind the sitting desk.

Sitting Too Much Can Hurt Your Heart

According to scientists, those who stand longer are more prone to heart diseases than those who stand for a more extended period—still sitting on the sitting desk and reading the content? Stand, take a walk and read.

Sitting Can Shorten the Life Span

We are not here to scare you or make you stressed. We are here to guide you to move from the sitting desk and take a walk. You would face early death if you spent too much time sitting desk. No one wants to die early; we all love to live. So make changes, at least for your health.

You Are More Likely to Get Dementia

Spending too much time behind the sitting desk can make your brain the same as someone who has dementia. Sitting can also raise the risks of diabetes, stroke, as well as high cholesterol level. So don't get glued to the sitting desk. It is time to stretch.

Undoing All the Hard Work, You Did

Sitting too much can undo the hard work you did in the gym. There is no way to reverse the 7 hours you spent sitting on the sitting desk for work. Keep moving.

Raise in The Diabetes

Sitting too long every day on the chair and sofa can surely increase diabetes in you as you burn fewer calories. According to doctors, sitting can change the way your body shows reaction to insulin, the hormone that helps your body burn more sugar and carbs.

DVT

While you think you are sitting desk and relaxing, spending time working, you miss something important. Deep vein thrombosis or DVT is described as a clot that gets formed in the legs. In most cases, it is because of too much sitting. But don't take DVT as a joke. The clot can even break and lodge in your leg.

Spike in The Anxiety

Being alone most of the time and working instead while sitting on the sitting desk the entire day can make you anxious and disrupt your sleep. Avoid sitting for long, rest, stretch, walk, stand, and you can even dance if you like dancing.

Siting Desk Can Wreck the Back

Sitting long on the sitting desk can put a lot of stress on your back and the muscles, your neck and the spinal cord. No matter how comfortable the sitting desks are, your back will never like a prolonged sitting period on the chair. If you care about your back and health, move around in-between your work and let your back and spine be in line.

Varicose Veins

Have you ever seen people suffering from varicose? Did you get the chance to see that veins? Sitting for long makes the blood pool in your legs. This process creates a lot of pressure on your veins. You can notice swelling, bulges and even twists, spider veins as well. Varicose veins are not severe, but they do ache.

Risk of Cancer

Sitting on the sitting desk throughout the day and working can raise your risk of getting cancer. You are more likely to get colon, lung cancer and even endometrial. The more you sit, the more you will have issues and risks. There is no point if you are a super active individual; what matters is the total number of hours you spent behind the sitting desk.

Sleep Schedule

You are likely to get off the sleeping schedule. Less sleep can cause you to gain weight, be tired the entire day, feel lazy and makes your body control your appetite.

Gain in Weight

Put, sitting too much means no activity. No activity means no movement in the body to be able to lose energy and fat. It means that you will gain weight or face obesity.

The Pros Of Sitting Desks

So far, we have read all about the cons of sitting at desks and sitting for an extended period of time. Let us go through some pros; as usual, there are two sides to each story.

Sitting can lose less energy, and it helps your body stabilize to perform great motor works and tests such as computer works and micro- surgery.
While working on the sitting desk, you have some privacy, as compared to the standing jobs.
As you work on the sitting desk, you will notice you have more control over everything, as you are sitting in the middle of the desk, and everything is under your control.
When you get tired, you can lean on the sitting desk, close your eyes, and rest for some time.
When you sit on the sitting desk and work, you are actually saving 20% more energy than working on your feet while standing.
For some people, owning a sitting desk is a big matter of pride. Working on the sitting desk can fetch you this great feeling.
Sitting desks makes you work more comfortably while you type or work with the computer.

On average, the people of America sit for 13 hours daily and sleep for 8 hours. The American people hate sitting and using sitting desks, but still, they do it all day. Today, as a result of the pandemic, the majority of the companies started working from home.

This means that the employees spend a long time at the sitting desk and work. Being home and getting protected from the pandemic is fine, but you risk your health by sitting too long.

Try to make a habit of moving and walking, don't ask for a coffee or tea while sitting at the sitting desk. Grab it yourself. It will be a great way to move from the sitting position and rest your legs and spine.

In both cases, if your profession asks you to get glued on the sitting desk and work for hours or to stand and work, it does not matter. You are bound to add movements to your day. So, during and after work, move, slowly exercise your neck, and stretch.

Please note that we all are buys in our phones maximum time in a day. Try to receive calls while you are walking. Do not sit and talk. Try to reduce the number of hours you sit, be it on the sofa, chair or even at the sitting desks.

In the content, we highlighted the most critical aspects of sitting and sitting desks. Sitting desks can be considerable and expensive, but they will never be very comfortable in the long run.

We all get tired of sitting, and so are the body and mind. Refresh your mind and relax your body by a small interval between your work. We can't change the fact that some of our jobs require sitting desks, as they are office jobs. But what we can change is the way we utilize the sitting desks.

We can still use the sitting desks as it is used worldwide, but we can add small changes in our routine.

Remember, no one will care for your health if you don't. So if you are sitting, take a walk and let life go ahead smoothly.

>>>Please click here to read more on computer desks on Wikipedia<<<

I trust you enjoyed this article on the pros and cons of sitting desks. Please stay tuned for more blog posts to come. Take care!

JeannetteZ

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I would love to hear from you. Please leave me your questions, experiences, remarks, and/or suggestions about this article on the pros and cons of sitting desks in the comments section below. You can also reach me by email at Jeannette@WorkFromAnywhereInTheWorld.com.