Wearable Device Research Shows Every Step Counts in Combating Sedentary Time New Study Finds Increasing Daily Steps Can Reduce Health Risks of Office Workers . Credit: scitechdaily.com

New research from the University of Sydney's Charles Perkins Centre in Australia offers promising news for employees who spend long hours at the office. A study of more than 72,000 individuals, published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine, reveals that increasing daily step counts can help reduce the health risks associated with extended periods of sitting.

Previous studies have shown a link between higher daily step counts and lower rates of death and cardiovascular disease (CVD). Separate studies have also found that prolonged periods of sedentary behavior can increase the risk of CVD and death. However, this latest study is the first to use wearable devices to objectively measure if daily steps can counteract the negative effects of sedentary time.

Lead author and research fellow Dr. Matthew Ahmadi explains, "This is not a free pass for individuals who spend excessive amounts of time sitting, but it does emphasize the importance of movement and that every step counts. People can and should try to offset the health consequences of unavoidable sedentary time by increasing their daily step count."

Senior author Professor Emmanuel Stamatakis, Director of the Mackenzie Wearables Research Hub at the Charles Perkins Centre, believes that this research is a significant step towards creating physical activity and sedentary behavior guidelines based on device-based measurements. "Step count is a tangible and easily understood measure of physical activity that can help individuals and health professionals accurately monitor their activity levels," says Professor Stamatakis.

The study used data from 72,174 individuals (average age of 61, with 58% female) from the UK Biobank study, a large biomedical database. Participants wore a wrist accelerometer for seven days to measure their physical activity. The data was used to estimate daily step count and time spent sedentary. The researchers then followed the participants' health outcomes by linking hospitalization data and death records.

The median daily step count for participants was 6222 steps per day. The researchers used 2200 steps per day (the lowest 5% of daily steps among all participants) as a baseline for assessing the impact of increasing step count on death and CVD events. The median time spent sedentary was 10.6 hours per day, and participants who spent more than 10.5 hours sedentary were considered to have high sedentary time, while those who spent less than 10.5 hours were categorized as low sedentary time.

After adjusting for various factors, such as age, sex, lifestyle habits, and family history, the researchers found that the optimal number of steps per day to counteract high sedentary time was between 9000 and 10000. This level of activity was associated with a 39% lower risk of death and a 21% lower risk of incident CVD. The researchers note that half of the benefits were achieved at around 4000-4500 steps per day.

While this study cannot prove cause and effect, and there is a possibility of bias, the large sample size and long follow-up time help to reduce these concerns. The authors suggest that further research is needed to combat potential biases and to explore the relationship between steps and sedentary time over a longer period.

In conclusion, the researchers state, "Any amount of daily steps above 2200 steps per day was associated with a lower risk of mortality and CVD among both low and high sedentary individuals. Accumulating between 9000 and 10000 steps per day was found to optimally lower the risk among highly sedentary participants."

Ann Castro
Ann Castro Author
Ann Castro carries a total of 7 years experience in the healthcare domain. She owns a Master’s of Medicine Degree. She bagged numerous awards by contributing in the medical field with her ground-breaking notions. Ann has developed her own style of working and known for accuracy in her work. She loves trekking. She visits new places whenever she gets free time.