The daily habit that can lower your risk of dying by up to 39 percent

Ask most physically fit people how they stay healthy, and they will likely say they spend hours in the gym. 

But new research suggests that simply choosing to skip the elevator or escalator in favor of climbing the stairs every day could help you to live a longer life.

Researchers at the University of East Anglia in the UK, analyzed data from nine studies involving more than 450,000 people.

Overall, they found that those who took the stairs ‘regularly’ had a 39 percent lower risk of dying from heart disease than those who did not.

Over the 14 years participants were tracked, stair users were also found to have a 24 percent lower risk of death from any cause than those who normally use an elevator.

Dr Sophie Paddock, a cardiologist involved in the research, said: ‘We found a consistent association between stair climbing and lower risk of both cardiovascular death and overall mortality.

‘Unlike going to the gym or doing a workout, climbing the stairs is something you can easily fit into your day at home, at work or when you’re out. It’s a good option for people who don’t have much time or easy access to exercise.’

She added: ‘If your choice is between taking the stairs or the [elevator], go for the stairs. Even brief bursts of physical activity have beneficial heart health impacts.’

The researchers did not say how often someone would need to climb the stairs to get heart health benefits, saying ‘further research’ was needed.

But their review did cite a paper, one of the largest analyses of its kind, that suggested climbing about six flights per day, or roughly 60 steps, gives heart health benefits. 

The team has also completed previous research that found just a few minutes of stair climbing per day may lower heart disease risk factors such as blood pressure. 

When someone climbs the stairs, muscles must exert a greater force than during walking to lift someone off the ground. 

This causes them to burn energy more quickly, causing the body to raise the heart rate to supply them with added oxygen and nutrients. The thigh muscles are the largest in the body. 

It’s this sudden burst of heart activity that researchers say can boost the organ’s health and that may slash the risk of heart problems.

Other muscles must also work to keep someone upright, which researchers say can strengthen them and reduce the risks of falls in old age. 

In the analysis, published in the American Journal of Cardiovascular Drugs, participants were 35 to 84 years old on average. Half were female, and they were tracked for 14 years on average. 

The studies varied in how they measured how often someone took the stairs. Some asked participants to rate their ability to climb several flights of stairs without resting, while others asked how many flights they climbed over a given time period. 

All the studies relied on self-reported data and none actually watched participants climbing the stairs to confirm how often they used them, which was the main limitation of the review. 

Heart disease is the biggest killer in America and kills about one person every 34 seconds, equivalent to more than 900,000 deaths per year.

People who are overweight or obese, have high blood pressure, are physically inactive or drink alcohol excessively are most at risk of the condition.

Researchers say it is easily prevented, however, through avoiding smoking, keeping cholesterol levels low, eating a healthy diet and exercising. 

Dr Vassilios Vassiliou, a cardiologist who led the study, said: ‘Taking the stairs is a practical and often overlooked way to build physical activity into daily life.

‘Our study shows that it could also help to prevent heart disease.’