Commuters who cycle to work could cut their risk of developing heart disease and cancer by almost half, new research suggests.

A major new study by the University of Glasgow has linked travelling by bike with a lower risk of cardiovascular issues and a longer life expectancy.

Researchers tracked the health of over 250,000 commuters in the UK over five years and compared people who had an "active" commute with those who used public transport or a car.

They found that 2,430 of those studied died, 3,748 were diagnosed with cancer and 1,110 had heart problems. Yet the results, published in the British Medical Journal, also showed that cycling an average of 30 miles a week cut the risk of death by 41%, the incidence of cancer by 45% and heart disease by 46%.

"Cycling all or part of the way to work was associated with substantially lower risk of adverse health outcomes," Dr Jason Gill, from the Institute of Cardiovascular and Medical Sciences, said. "Those who cycled the full length of their commute had an over 40% lower risk of heart disease, cancer and overall mortality over the 5 years of follow-up."

While walking to work was also found to be good for health, this only applied to those who walked more than six miles a week and did not appear to be as beneficial as cycling. "This may be because walkers commuted shorter distances than cyclists – typically 6 miles per week, compared with 30 miles per week – and walking is generally a lower intensity of exercise than cycling," researcher Dr Carlos Celis-Morales explained.

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Speaking to the BBC, Dr Gill highlighted how commuting can be a great opportunity to exercise.

"This is really clear evidence that people who commute in an active way, particularly by cycling, were at lower risk," he said. "You need to get to work every day so if you built cycling into the day it essentially takes willpower out of the equation."

However, as many cycling charities have been quick to point out, Dr Gill added that changes need to made to make cyclists feel safer. "What we really need to do is change our infrastructure to make it easier to cycle - we need bike lanes, to make it easier to put bikes on trains, showers at work."

Many keen cyclists have welcomed the study's findings on social media, but have stressed the need for more bike lanes and road improvements, particularly in busy cities.

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Jason Torrance, from cycling charity Sustrans, told The Independent: "There's an urgent need to improve road conditions for cyclists and transforming local roads and streets into places that people feel safe and want to be."

He added: "Some cities are taking a leading role in doing that, like London and Manchester, which are doing some fantastic things. But more needs to be done."

From: Country Living UK