People in the richest areas of England have 19 more years of good health than those in the poorest areas, according to a new report.
While average life expectancy has reached 83.2 years for women and 79.6 years for men, there are “stubborn inequalities” between different parts of the country, says Public Health England (PHE). Those in the most deprived areas have higher death rates for heart disease, chronic respiratory diseases and cancer, partly as a result of smoking and obesity problems. Children are twice as likely to be born with low birthweight and more than three times as likely to suffer tooth decay.
Women are dying earlier in the UK than in most EU countries. UK women rank 18th out of 28 for life expectancy while UK men fared better at 10th. In England, women spend 19.3 years, or just over 23 per cent of their lives, in poor health, compared to 16.2 years (around 20 per cent) for men. Dementia and Alzheimer’s, which is already the leading cause of death in women, is likely to overtake heart disease as the leading cause of death for men by 2020. The number of people with diabetes is expected to increase from just under four million in 2017 to almost five million in 2035.
The Health Profile for England also predicts that only 10 per cent of the population will be smoking by 2023.
By 2031 it is expected that more than two million people will be aged 85 and over, as the baby boomers born after Second World War move into this age group.
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