Interventions to reduce sedentary behavior and increase physical activity during productive work: a systematic review

Abstract

Interventions to reduce sedentary behavior and increase physical activity during productive work: a systematic review by Commissaris DACM, Huysmans MA, Mathiassen SE, Srinivasan D, Koppes LLJ, Hendriksen IJM This systematic review on interventions intended to change workers' sedentary behavior or physical activity is the first to focus on initiatives that can be implemented during productive work and that change behavior while workers perform their usual jobs. Thus, the review offers decision support when selecting effective interventions for improved health and well-being that are compatible with maintained production.Key terms: activity-permissive workstation; alternative workstation; best-evidence synthesis; intervention; personalized behavioral intervention; physical activity; physical inactivity; productive work; review; sedentary behavior; sitting; stair use; systematic review; workplace This article in PubMed: www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/26683116 Additional materialPlease note that there is additional material available belonging to this article on the Scandinavian Journal of Work, Environment & Health -website. Scand J Work Environ Health 2016, vol 42, no 3 181Review Scand J Work Environ Health 2016;42(3):181-191. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3544 Interventions to reduce sedentary behavior and increase physical activity during productive work: a systematic review by Dianne ACM Commissaris, PhD,1,2,3 Maaike A Huysmans, PhD,4, 5 Svend Erik Mathiassen, Professor, 2 Divya Srinivasan, PhD, 2 Lando LJ Koppes, PhD,1,6 Ingrid JM Hendriksen, PhD 1,5 Commissaris DACM, Huysmans MA, Mathiassen SE, Srinivasan D, Koppes LLJ, Hendriksen IJM. Interventions to reduce sedentary behavior and increase physical activity during productive work: a systematic review. Scand J Work Environ Health. 2016;42(3): 181-191. doi:10.5271/sjweh.3544 Objectives Many current jobs are characterized by sedentary behavior (SB) and lack of physical activity (PA).This review addresses the effectiveness of workplace interventions that are implemented during productive work and are intended to change workers' SB and/or PA. MethodsWe searched Scopus for articles published from 1992 until 12 March 2015. Relevant studies were evaluated using the Quality Assessment Tool for Quantitative Studies and summarized in a best-evidence synthesis. Primary outcomes were SB and PA, both at work and overall (ie, during the whole day); work performance and health-related parameters were secondary outcomes. ResultsThe review included 40 studies describing 41 interventions organized into three categories: alternative workstations (20), interventions promoting stair use (11), and personalized behavioral interventions (10). Alternative workstations were found to decrease overall SB (strong evidence; even for treadmills separately); interventions promoting stair use were found to increase PA at work while personalized behavioral interventions increased overall PA (both with moderate evidence). There was moderate evidence to show alternative workstations influenced neithe...

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