Unit blocks 'are good for health'

YOU should never complain about living in a cramped little unit again. The higher the floor you live on, the greater your life expectancy, scientists say.

apartment living

LIVING on the top floor of your unit block? The higher the floor you live on, the greater your life expectancy, scientists say.

Researchers at the University of Bern in Switzerland found the chances of dying from serious lung disease was 40 per cent greater among residents who lived on the ground floor compared with those on the eighth floor or above. Deaths from heart disease were 35 per cent higher.

One reason may be that high-rise residents are more likely to use the stairs, boosting fitness, while air pollution and wealth could also be factors, the researchers said.

Suicide was the only type of death with increased rates among those living higher up.