Correct, but the evidence does not indicate that standing for hours a day is any better for overall health than sitting. What I really want is a walk-around desk ... but I'll grant that I might be more likely to move around periodically if I'm already standing.
When I'm standing up I tend to move about more and wander off while I'm thinking about stuff. I definitely get more exercise than when I'm sitting down.
Perhaps, but there are only two possibilities (that I see).
1) Standing is radically more healthy than sitting, or
2) Being upright and walking / moving, is what is radically more healthy than sitting
I think that part of the problem with sitting is the blocking of the circulation system through slightly crimping the arteries in your legs. It strikes me that just standing up alone would relieve a lot of that stress and assist the free flow of blood and oxygen.
So if you want to play it safe, stand up, and move about regularly. If you're standing at your desk, I'd argue it's far more likely you'll move about regularly as you're working on problems throughout the day.
I've read previously that the average American used to walk three to five miles per day a hundred years ago, and that's down to a small fraction of that now.
I'd counter argue that the common negative health effects of sitting down far outweigh the common health effects of varicose veins (from that wiki):
"Most varicose veins are relatively benign, but severe varicosities can lead to major complications, due to the poor circulation through the affected limb."
I think the positive evidence for standing versus sitting is overwhelming to put it lightly.
"This isn't actually a new discovery. In a British study published in 1953, scientists examined two groups of workers: bus drivers and trolley conductors. At first glance, the two occupations appeared to be pretty similar. But while the bus drivers were more likely to sit down for their entire day, the trolley conductors were running up and down the stairs and aisles of the double-decker trolleys. As it turned out, the bus drivers were nearly twice as likely to die of heart disease as the conductors were."
