Maps Reveal ‘Unhealthy’ England

The areas of England with the best and worst health have been revealed in government “health maps”.

Across the country, the maps show wide variations in rates of obesity, smoking and life expectancy, with the South faring much better than the North.

It is the second year such snapshot figures have been issued. In 2006, they prompted many local authorities to set up schemes to tackle inequalities.

But public health experts said funding needed to be more consistent.

The profiles, which are meant to be used by local councils and NHS commissioners to target specific problems, highlight a big north-south divide in life expectancy.

The North West comes out particularly badly. Residents are more likely to die from smoking-related illnesses, heart disease, stroke and cancer than anywhere else in the country, although there have been improvements here in life expectancy and in cutting deaths from cancer and heart disease over recent years.

The North East also has high rates of smoking, drinking and obesity, although adults in Teesdale, Durham and Alnwick are among the most active in the country.

In the South, the picture is different. People in Buckinghamshire have some of the lowest alcohol-related hospital admissions in the country.
    
THE GOOD

Chiltern, in Buckinghamshire, has the lowest number of deaths from smoking at 147 deaths per 100,000 people
Kensington and Chelsea has the fewest deaths from cancer with 81 deaths per 100,000 people
St Albans, in Hertfordshire, has the fewest people admitted to hospital with alcohol-related problems at 85 per 100,000

And West Oxfordshire and Buckinghamshire have some of the lowest rates of child poverty.

Only 17% of adults in Elmbridge, Surrey, smoke, compared with a national average of 26%.

However, in the South there are some regional variations which need to be tackled.

In the South West, for example, there are big differences in life expectancy.

Men living in Plymouth can expect to live to 76 while the average life expectancy for a man in East Dorset is 80.9 years.

Likewise, women in Swindon have a life expectancy of 80.7 years compared with 84.1 years in East Dorset.

In Yorkshire, men’s health programmes have been launched to improve life expectancy, and include “stop smoking” campaigns, football and gym sessions and health advice sessions in pubs.
    
THE BAD

Easington, in County Durham, has the highest proportion of adult smokers at 37%
Liverpool as the highest rate of hospital admissions for alcohol-related problems at 652 per 100,000
Boston, in Lincolnshire, has the highest proportion of obese adults at 31%

Telford and Wrekin in the West Midlands are trying to tackle premature deaths from coronary heart disease and stroke with weight loss and exercise classes.

Public Health Minister Caroline Flint said: “Information about health and wellbeing in your local area is essential for assessing the needs of the local population and monitoring how well health improvement strategies are working.

“One of our priority areas is smoking – we already know 10 million adults smoke, but knowing where the local problem areas are helps target quit smoking programmes effectively.”

Dr Alan Maryon Davis, president elect of the Faculty of Public Health, said the health maps showed “at a glance” what needed to be done.

“Even in well-off areas you will get real pockets of deprivation and that’s where these maps are terribly useful.

“There’s been some good progress made in the past 10 years on reducing these inequalities and the smoking ban is going to make a huge difference.”

He said that public health funding needed to be more consistent if initiatives were to be sustainable.

“Often you get bits of money here and there but there’s no stability in the system,” he added.