The Sick Poor

Study into premature death rates in local authorities highlights stark division between rich and poor areas.

Blackpool, the most deprived area of England, has twice the rate of early deaths of Wokingham, the most affluent, research shows.

 A major study published by the Lancet medical journal shows that high rates of premature deaths from avoidable illnesses such as heart disease and some cancers are firmly tied to poverty and deprivation.

Blackpool’s rate of premature mortality – death earlier than it should have been according to life expectancy at birth – was twice that of the most affluent local authorities – Wokingham, Surrey, Windsor and Maidenhead, and West Berkshire – according to the Global Burden of Disease initiative.

“The scale of it was a surprise to us,” said Prof Nicholas Steel, lead author from the University of East Anglia. “There is more than a twofold variation.”

The main cause of early deaths was heart disease, with rates for men twice that of women. Half of all of the early deaths in 2016 were linked to preventable lifestyle risks.

“The big ones – tobacco, diet, alcohol and drugs, obesity and high blood pressure – we see them clustering in the poor areas,” said Steel. “Blackpool has hugely high rates of smoking and poor diet.”

People are living longer but their extra years are not always spent in good physical and mental health, the study shows. The leading causes of disability were low back and neck pain, skin problems, migraine, depressive disorders, poor sight and hearing, and anxiety disorders.

Prof John Newton, author and director of health improvement at Public Health England, said the work “highlights the stark division between rich and poor areas, which sees poorer people dying earlier and getting sicker quicker.

https://www.theguardian.com/society/2018/oct/25/early-death-rate-in-deprived-blackpool-twice-that-of-the-most-affluent-areas