30 Aug 2012
ONS: UK residents living longer, healthier lives
BY Tom Walker
Image: Britons are enjoying longer, healthier lives
People in the UK are living longer, healthier lives than ever before according to a report from the Office for National Statistics.
The healthy life expectancy increased by more than two years between 2005 and 2010, with more than 75 per cent of a lifetime in the UK spent in good health from birth.
The figures do, however, differ regionally. While the proportion of life spent in very good or good general health is increasing in England and Wales it is, on the whole, falling in Scotland and Northern Ireland.
There are also differences between genders, with males spending a greater proportion of their lives in favourable health compared with females. However, in recent years this gap has narrowed as the health of females has improved more rapidly than for males.
The findings indicate that Scotland and Northern Ireland may face proportionally greater future demands on health services than England and Wales due to the well established link between self-rated health and subsequent mortality and health service use.
To read the full ONS report, click here.
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