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Study Suggests Active Commuters Reap Health Benefits
A study published in the Archives of Internal Medicine suggests that adults who walk or bike to work are more physically fit than their counterparts who commute by other means, United Press International reports. Using data from 2,364 participants enrolled in the Coronary Artery Risk Development in Young Adults study, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill researchers and colleagues determined that 16.7 percent of the study participants engaged in some means of active commuting to get to their work place. After controlling for age, race, income, education and tobacco use, the researchers found that men who actively commuted to work were less likely to be obese and had lower relative body mass indices, triglyceride levels, blood pressure, fasting insulin levels and cardiovascular disease risk than peers who did not actively commute to work. According to the data, fitness gains were observed in both men and women. Based on the findings, the researchers recommend that "active commuting be investigated as a modality for maintaining or improving health." (UPI, 7/13/09; Gordon-Larsen et al., Archives of Internal Medicine, 7/13/09 [subscription required]).