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People who cycle to work in the UK have a higher risk of injury-related hospitalisation, according to a study published yesterday that led to headlines saying they are 50 per cent more likely to be injured. But don’t get off your bike – the study also found that the overall health benefits of cycling vastly outweigh the risks from injury.
This adds to a large body of evidence suggesting that cycling is extremely worthwhile, but people seem reluctant to start. Of the 230,390 UK commuters that participated in the study, only 2.5 per cent said cycling was their main method of commuting.
So why are people hesitating? As someone who cycles to work myself, a serious worry is the danger of getting into an accident – and I’m not alone. A 2015 UK government survey found that 64 per cent of people thought cycling on roads would be too dangerous.
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This new study shows people’s fears aren’t unreasonable – commuting by bike is associated with an increased risk of admission to hospital for injury, with 7 per cent of cyclists experiencing such an injury compared to 4.3 per cent of non-cyclists. Squint a bit, and you can turn that into the “50 per cent more likely” figure mentioned above.
But Paul Welsh at the University of Glasgow in the UK, who led the study and who cycles himself, says the risk of death from cycling injury is vanishingly small. In fact, it is far outweighed by the decreased risk of death that comes from the increased physical activity and lower BMI of cyclists. “The data are still very much in favour of cycling for those who are capable of doing so,” says Welsh.
Cyclists have a far lower risk of cardiovascular disease, cancer and death compared with people who drive, take public transport or walk to work – a finding supported by this and previous studies. If an extra 1000 people took up cycling for 10 years, we would expect to see 15 fewer cancers, four fewer heart attacks or strokes and three fewer deaths.
Cycling is unique because of the way it gets our hearts pumping, says Anne Lusk at Harvard University in Massachusetts, who was not involved in the study. Riding a bike raises our heart rates and requires more effort than walking – even just balancing on a bike uses many more muscles than are needed to stay upright while walking.
And don’t forget the environmental benefits of cycling. Getting people out of cars and buses reduces pollution and improves the local environment.
Instead of putting people off cycling, we should see this study as confirming the need to make infrastructure safer for cyclists, encouraging more people to commute by bike. Just don’t forget your helmet.
Journal reference: BMJ, DOI: 10.1136/bmj.m336
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