Research articleSedentary Behavior in Dutch Workers: Differences Between Occupations and Business Sectors
Introduction
Various studies have shown that, besides too little physical activity, sedentary behavior is an independent risk factor for overweight, metabolic syndromes, and diabetes.1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7 Sedentary behavior involves activities with a very low energy expenditure (1.0–1.8 metabolic equivalents [MET]), performed mainly in a sitting or supine position. To date, studies have used hours spent watching TV as the main indicator of sedentary behavior.2, 3, 4, 6, 7 However, watching TV is only one of many sedentary activities. Today, many jobs involve sitting at work; more than one quarter of the Dutch working population has only seated work.8 Very few published studies have investigated how long workers spend doing seated work, or how the sitting time at work relates to total sitting time each day.
There are major differences in sedentary behavior between occupations and sectors (branches of business). This is borne out by previous studies on the amount of physical activity9 and obesity10 in different occupations. These studies also have shown that occupations involving a greater degree of activity have a relatively low incidence of obesity. The most physically inactive occupations have relatively high prevalence of obesity. Nevertheless, there are some occupations and sectors in which this link is less clear. Factors such as socioeconomic status (SES) and differences in sedentary behavior also may confound the association.
Sitting time at work is determined largely by the nature of the work in question. It may be expected that workers in occupations and sectors with relatively long periods of sitting at work compensate for this lack of activity by sitting less during their leisure time. Conversely, workers who are seldom seated while working may spend more time sitting down during their leisure time. To date, no published studies have explored the relationship between occupation and sedentary behavior, both at work and during leisure time.
This study describes how many hours per day the Dutch working population spends sitting down, and what proportion of this is work-related. The differences among various occupational groups and sectors in total sitting time, sitting time at work, and sitting time during leisure time were examined in a representative sample of the Dutch working population. It was hypothesized that occupations and sectors with relatively long sitting times at work might compensate during their leisure time by spending less time sitting.
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Study Population and Design
The data were derived from a continuous cross-sectional survey known as Injuries and Physical Activity in the Netherlands from 2000 to 2005. Approximately 10,000 individuals per year were interviewed by telephone, using a computer-based survey system. Sampling via random-digit dialing was used, as it provided a representative sample of Dutch households. Once a list had been compiled of all the individuals in a given family, the computer selected one of them to act as the respondent. One quarter
General Characteristics of the Study Population
Of the 60,628 respondents, 25,954 met the definition of worker. Of these, 7720 were given detailed questions about sedentary behavior. The mean age of the study population (N=7720) was 39 (SD=11), 60% were men, and 38% had a higher vocational education or university. Twenty percent had a small part-time job, 16% had a large part-time job, and 64% worked full-time.
Sedentary Behavior
On average, Dutch workers spent 862 minutes (well over 14 hours) per day either sitting or supine (Table 1). Of this, an average of
Discussion
This study of the Dutch working population showed that, on average, workers were sitting for 7 hours per day. Well over 2 hours of this total involved time spent at work and traveling to and from work. While the number of hours spent sitting at work was not particularly excessive, this average also included nonworking days (such as weekends and holidays), during which no time was spent sitting at work. As was shown in the results, for those who had worked on the previous day, the average time
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