The Trade-offs of Biking in the City

When you bike through the city, you definitely help reduce the greenhouse gas emissions as well as get a good workout. However, not everybody decides to just set aside the convenience of driving with a car for nature.

There will always be risks to any initiative. It's possible that biking through the city could affect your lungs when you breathe in all the air pollution that vehicles emit. Not only that, but you also have to watch out for accidents. There isn't much protection for cyclists. You definitely would risk physical injury, despite your efforts to cover your body with protective gear.

However, that doesn't mean we should abandon biking altogether because of these risks.

Believe it or not, there’s actually a study that took on your very question about the health benefits of biking (ripped calves, strong heart) vs. huffing in polluted air (everything we already discussed), and found that the answer is yes, cycling is still worth it. Even in the most extreme cases — cities in the 99th percentile of particulate matter concentration — an hour-long bike ride is still considered to have net-positive benefits.

(Image credit: Free-Photos/Pixabay)


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