Commuters who cycle or walk to and from work or study may have lower risks of mental and physical ill health than those who don't rely on these options, finds a large long term study published in the open access journal BMJ Public Health. While health benefits were observed for both types of active commuting, the strongest health benefits were seen for cyclists among whom the risk of death from any cause was 47% lower, the findings show. Active travel is considered to be one of the most practical and sustainable ways to increase daily physical activity, and there is mounting evidence in favour of its associated health benefits, note the researchers.
But the existing body of evidence has been hampered by short monitoring periods, narrow age groups, and limited health outcomes, they add. In a bid to redress these shortcomings, the researchers drew on nationally representative data from the Scottish Longitudinal Study (SLS), which is based on 5% of the Scottish population derived from Census returns in 1991, 2001, and 2011. The researchers focused on 16–74 year olds in 2001 who traveled to work or study in the UK.
After exclusions for incomplete data, the final analysis was based on 82,297 people. Census respondents were asked to select which mode of travel they used for the longest part, by distance, of their usual commute. Active travel was defined as either walking or cycling.
All other commuting methods were defined as 'inactive'. The responses were linked to national hosp.