Reducing sitting time in the workplace by just over an hour per day could benefit health, new research suggests.

Danish and Australian researchers carried out a workplace intervention aimed at getting people to sit less during their working day. This involved 317 office workers in 19 different offices.

The participants were randomly put into intervention or control groups. The intervention group included environmental changes in the office and a workshop, where workers were encouraged to use sit-stand desks.

The participants were assessed one month after the intervention, and again three months later.

The researchers found that after one month, those in the intervention group were sitting for 71 minutes less per day than their colleagues, while after three months, they were sitting for 48 minutes less per day.

They also found that after one month, the number of steps taken per workday hour by those in the intervention group was 7% higher than their colleagues, and after three months, it was 8% higher.

Meanwhile, those in the intervention group showed a reduction of 0.61 percentage points in body fat percentage.

The vast majority of people had no problems with standing for longer. In fact, very few said they experienced pain as a result and less than 6% overall reported any negative consequences.

"A reduction in sitting time by 71 minutes per day and increases in interruptions could have positive effects and, in the long run, could be associated with reduced risk of heart diseases, diabetes and all-cause mortality, especially among those who are inactive in their leisure time," the researchers said.

Details of these findings are published in the International Journal of Epidemiology.