Office workers should be on their feet for a minimum of two hours daily during working hours – and ideally four – to counter the impact of sedentary behaviour, according to a study co-commissioned by Public Health England (PHE).

The findings – published in the British Journal of Sports Medicine – evaluate and distill the available evidence to offer guidance on curbing the health risks of too much sitting. It was drawn up by a panel of international experts, having been co-commissioned by PHE and Active Working CIC – the company behind the Get Britain Standing campaign.

The authors point out that in the UK, sedentary behaviour now accounts for 60 per cent of people’s waking hours, with office workers spending 65 to 75 per cent of their day sitting. The guidance advises breaking up prolonged periods of sitting with the use of sit-stand desks, standing-based work, and regular walkabouts.

Sedentary behaviour is frequently dubbed “the new smoking” and the guidance aims to turn the tide on office workers’ idleness. Research has shown that every hour spent sitting cancels out 30 minutes of exercise, with sedentary behaviour also linked to heart disease, type 2 diabetes, cancers and poor mental health.

A five-minute walk every hour has been found to prevent arterial damage in the legs caused by prolonged periods of sitting, so advocates are urging employers to encourage regular activity and warn their staff about the potential dangers of too much time spent sitting down either at work or at home.

There are also calls for further research into whether facilities such as toilets should be moved further away from staff, some emails could be replaced by hand-delivered messages and whether workers could have alarms on their computers or activity trackers prompting them to move.

The authors acknowledge that much of the evidence they draw on for their recommendations is based on observational and retrospective studies, making it difficult to prove direct cause and effect. Nevertheless, they write: “While longer term intervention studies are required, the level of consistent evidence accumulated to date, and the public health context of rising chronic diseases, suggest initial guidelines are justified.”