An e-health intervention designed to increase workday energy expenditure by reducing prolonged occupational sitting habits

Abstract

<p><b>BACKGROUND:</b> Desk-based employees face multiple workplace health hazards such as insufficient physical activity and prolonged sitting.<br/><b>OBJECTIVE:</b> The objective of this study was to increase workday energy expenditure by interrupting prolonged occupational sitting time and introducing short-bursts of physical activity to employees' daily work habits.<br/><b>METHODS:</b> Over a 13-week period participants (<i>n</i>=17) in the intervention group were regularly exposed to a passive prompt delivered through their desktop computer that required them to stand up and engage in a short-burst of physical activity, while the control group (<i>n</i>=17) was not exposed to this intervention. Instead, the control group continued with their normal work routine. All participants completed a pre- and post- intervention survey to estimate workplace daily energy expenditure (calories).<br/><b>RESULTS:</b> There was a significant 2 (Group) × 2 (Test) interaction, <i>F</i> (1, 32)=9.26, <i>p</i> < 0.05. The intervention group increased the calories expended during the workday from pre-test (<i>M</i>=866.29 ± 151.40) to post-test (<i>M</i>=1054.10 ± 393.24), whereas the control group decreased calories expended during the workday from pre-test (<i>M</i>=982.55 ± 315.66) to post-test (<i>M</i>=892.21 ± 255.36).<br/><b>CONCLUSIONS:</b> An e-health intervention using a passive prompt was an effective mechanism for increasing employee work-related energy expenditure. Engaging employees in regular short-bursts of physical activity during the workday resulted in reduced sitting time, which may have long-term effects on the improvement of employee health.</p>