Cycling to work can cut the risk of developing cancer or heart disease according to a study conducted by Glasgow University.
Researchers followed 205,000 UK commuters for five years and found that those who traveled regularly by bike were 41% less likely to die of any cause, with the risk of dying from cancer falling by 45% and of heart disease by 46%.
Commuters who walked to work also showed better health, but only if they walked over six miles a week.
Dr Jason Gill of Glasgow University told the BBC ‘this is really clear evidence that people who commute in an active way, particularly by cycling are at a lower risk’.
Also speaking to the BBC Clare Hyde of Cancer Research UK said the report helped to ‘highlight the potential benefits of building activity into your everyday life.’
Cycling is seen as being better exercise than walking because the exertion needed is more intense.
As the country faces a surprise general election health and transport are certain to be major issues for voters. This report brings the two together in one neat package, as a country we drive too much and walk too little; our health and environment suffer as a result.
In cities like Stoke-on-Trent where air quality is a serious problem having a transport system that makes it easy to get around and is more important than ever.
Local green Party activist Adam Colclough said ‘Stoke needs a fully integrated transport system that brings buses, cycle lanes and even trams together to end gridlock and boost both the environment and the local economy.
The Green Party is committed to creating a transport system that is not dependent on car use and that makes it easier for people to cycle and walk safely. In Green controlled Brighton journeys by cycle rose by 11% between 2009 and 2012, there have been fewer road casualties and harmful emissions have also been reduced.
Those benefits and more could be replicated in Stoke-on-Trent if the city chooses to change its political course and elect a Green Party MP on June 8th.
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