10 small things that can save your life

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We're always being told to get fit and eat more healthily which can often sound pretty daunting. Where do you start, for goodness sake?

We're not going to stop you going to the gym (or even say you have to), because there are other much smaller and easier things you can do to improve your health and, hopefully, help you live longer. From walking up the stairs to eating garlic, we've come up with 10 small things that could save your life.

1. Walking up the stairs

Ditch the lift and take the stairs and you could save your life, according to one study.

Researchers from the University Hospital of Geneva asked volunteers with a low activity level to take the stairs, rather than use the lift.

After 3 months the number of flights of stairs they took every day had increased from 5 to 23. Tests showed that the amount of oxygen their body could use had increased by 8.6%, their blood pressure had dropped, bad cholesterol levels had dropped and their waist measurement had decreased by 2%.

2. Floss your teeth

With the difficulty of finding an NHS dentist and the rising costs of check-ups, it's easy to see why fewer and fewer people are making the trip to the dentist.

But simply brushing your teeth twice a day and flossing can actually help to reduce heart disease.

Flossing helps to stop periodontal disease, which is where the gums around the teeth become infected. It reduces gum inflammation, which stops blood vessels that lead to the heart getting inflamed. Simple!

By Rob Mansfield