Want to live heart-attack free — and to spend that life doing fun stuff other than fighting traffic? Don’t drive so much. That’s the short conclusion I’ve come to after reading the green headlines of the day, of which the most striking is this one from Grist: “Sitting in traffic triggers more heart attacks than eating, alcohol, cocaine, and sex.”
In the post, Grist’s Christopher Mims reports on a study published in the medical journal The Lancet — which has the much more boring title of “Public health importance of triggers of myocardial infarction: a comparative risk assessment” — and boils down the news coverage of that study. The gist? Sure, snorting cocaine will seriously up your individual risk of a heart attack, but legal and more common everyday activities like sitting in traffic have a much bigger effect on the general population, making wasting time in a traffic snarl one of the most dangerous activities for the heart.
What about greener commuters who still have to contend with traffic? One alarming headline from the Mail UK reads “Why cycling to work is one of the biggest causes of heart attacks” — but cyclists should not let that headline convince them to suddenly swap their two pedals for the gas pedal. The Mail first scares bicycle riders by noting that “cyclists are in greatest danger because they are more heavily exposed to pollution and are subjecting themselves to another major heart attack trigger, exercise” — but then goes on to give a bigger picture of cyclists’ health later on in the article:
Judy O’Sullivan, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said the benefits of exercising outdoors outweighed the risks from air pollution for most individuals, and urged people not to be put off running, walking or cycling in towns and cities.
Other headlines this week have bemoaned the cost of oil and rising gas prices — but these trends could actually have gains for human health, if they convince more people to live closer to work, ditching the long costly commutes. How far do you live from work? Have you noticed any relationship between your commute and your mental and physical health?
Earlier:
>> Live near work, save planet and money and time
>> Abogo reveals the transportation costs of your neighborhood
>> How to decide to be happier: Pick the smaller home closer to work
>> An eco-case for renting an apartment in the city
Photo by Ernesto Andrade
The Daily Mail is an extraordinarily crappy newspaper that is getting very good and attracting web traffic. but don’t believe anything you read in it, particulary related to health.
Here is a list that someone has compiled from the Daily Mail of things that cause or cure cancer. Many things manage to do both.
http://kill-or-cure.heroku.com/
Comment by Jeremy Miles — February 24, 2011 @ 5:34 pm
Since most people are sitting in traffic are probably going to or from work, and cycling to work is also a no-no, can we assume that the greatest trigger is work? Lol, seriously, though, thanks for sharing the info.
Comment by Jen Green — February 25, 2011 @ 9:59 am
Actually after driving NEVs & being only able to go 25mph it forced me to learn how to relax while moving like a snail. On the flip side, it’s people who drive the streets & highways speeding like maniacs that really stress me out! That’s how serious accidents happen…
Comment by Electric Car Muse — February 25, 2011 @ 10:53 am
Jen – Ha! That wouldn’t really apply to me since I work at home, but it’s a good argument for 4-day workweeks :)
Comment by Siel — March 2, 2011 @ 6:53 pm