HEALTH

Cycling to work can lower your risk of premature death by 41%, a study shows.

Research suggests it can also cut the risk of developing cancer by 45% and heart disease by 46% compared to those who drive or catch a bus or train to the office.

University of Glasgow experts studied more than 260,000 people aged between 40 and 69 for five years.

Walking to work also showed health benefits but cycling was associated with the lowest risks overall.

Two in three men with a family history of prostate cancer are dangerously unaware of their increased risk of the disease, experts warn today.

Campaigners fear thousands are not having the vital chat with their GP that could save their lives. Men are two and a half times more likely to develop prostate cancer if their father or brother has had it, compared to a man with no affected relatives.

The cancer is the most common in men and kills more than 11,000 a year in the UK.

Prostate Cancer UK chief Angela Culhane said: “On Father’s Day, ask your dads, brothers, grandads, husbands, partners and friends about prostate cancer and urge them to book an appointment with their doctor if they have a family history of the disease.”

Afternoon naps are good for the brain as long as they’re not too long, say researchers.

Based on two years of data from 3,000 men and women aged 65 and over, they discovered those who often napped for less than 90 minutes a day performed better on cognitive and memory tests. The worst performers were those who napped for longer than this, according to the University of Pennsylvania.

ANDREW GREGORY is the Mirror’s Health Editor