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There has been quite some buzz about a new pill that researchers say will give people over 50 years old more healthy life.

The Polypill is said to reduce blood pressure and cholesterol, cutting risk of heart attack by 75 percent and a stroke by 66 percent.

Lead researcher David Wald said the benefits of the pill outweigh the risks.

"The health implications of our results are large," Wald said." If people took the polypill from age 50, an estimated 28 percent would benefit by avoiding or delaying a heart attack or stroke during their lifetime. On average, those who benefit would gain 11 years of life without a heart attack or stroke.

Wald is urging that the Polypill be made available over the counter "without delay."

"When something like this is developed it should be made available as quickly as possible," Wald said. "How people pay for it is a judgment society needs to make."

The polypill could be approved by medical regulators in just two years.

Nicholas Wald is noted for inventing the polypill concept and said the pill could be dispensed by trained pharmacists or nurses after checking recipients were suitable.

"There should be an assessment, but I don't think a physical assessment by a doctor is necessary," he said. "Even if only 50 per cent of people aged 50 or more took the polypill, about 94,000 fatal and non-fatal heart attacks and strokes would be prevented each year in the UK."

But, not everyone is raving over the new pill.

Natasha Stewart, senior cardiac nurse at the British Heart Foundation, said she is cautious.

"Research into polypills is encouraging, but there are still many questions to answer before this 'wonder drug' is prescribed by doctors," Stewart said. "However interesting this potential new pill is medicines are not a substitute for living a healthy lifestyle. Staying active, eating healthily and not smoking are still vital ways to help keep your heart in good shape."

General Practioner Margaret McCartney agrees with Stewart and said more evidence was needed.

"The history of medicine is rich with ideas that sounded great but either didn't prove effective - or worse, did harm," she said. "Because of this, we need trial evidence that looks at real life outcomes like death rates - not just biochemical numbers. We also have increasing evidence that well women, for example, don't benefit from statins - meaning that we may only be offering them side effects- and while muscle aches might seem like a minor side effect, if it stops someone walking or socialising it becomes major. We need much larger trials that gives us fair representations of risk and harm - and that's independent - separate from patent holders."

Researchers say that every year up to 200,000 people die of cardiovascular disease but if everyone in the UK over 50 took the pill that number could drop by more than 50 percent.

The Polypill contains a three blood pressure lowering medicines, amlodipine, losartan and hydrochlorothiazide, and a cholesterol-busting statin, simvastatin,

The results are published in the journalPLoS One.