According to new research, standing for a long time is also bad for us. The study, conducted by scientists at the University of Curtin in Australia, found that adults who stand for two hours at work experience increased physical discomfort and reduced mental health. Think many people have the same idea when they read this. Earlier this year, medical news today reported a study that linked prolonged sitting to visceral fat, or the accumulation of fat around the gut. This is the worst kind of fat that increases our risk of cardiovascular disease and diabetes.

In 2016, another study we reported claimed that sitting for more than three hours a day was responsible for more than 430,000 deaths in 54 countries. Given that Americans spend an average of 12 hours a day sitting, such studies are worrisome. It seems that increasing physical activity alone does not reduce the harm of sitting for long periods. So what can we do?

According to research, we need to reduce the amount of time we sit down. Go to your standing desk. Is that a solution to the problem? In response to the “posture problem”, stand-up work has become all the rage. Research shows that standing desks not only reduce the amount of time people spend in the workplace but are also linked to increased productivity. But the new study, recently published in the journal of human ergonomics, suggests that standing may not be good for us.

The researchers tested 20 adults for what they thought was a comfortable stance and found that standing for two hours affected cognitive function. The participants also reported a 47 percent increase in discomfort across all body areas, particularly in the lower back and lower extremities. The subjects also reported lower limb swelling. Based on these results, the researchers concluded that “prolonged standing should be done with caution.”

It’s worth noting that the study included only 20 people, which is not a large enough sample to draw definitive conclusions about the risks of standing for long periods. From a personal perspective, I find that using a desk for a few hours a day not only helps me focus but also forces me to walk around.