Analysis published in the Lancet shows life expectancy in the UK has improved over the last 20 years, but levels of ill health have not. The UK is now below average compared with 18 other countries.
The analysis of the Global Burden of Disease Study 2010 was co-authored by Professor Kevin Fenton, director of health and wellbeing of Public Health England (PHE) and Professor John Newton, chief knowledge officer of PHE, among others. The report looked at how the health of the UK compares with 14 other EU countries, Australia, Canada, Norway and the United States. In the 20 years from 1990 to 2010, life expectancy overall increased by 4.2 years in the UK to 79.9 years. However, improvements have been very small for some age groups and the UK has performed poorly compared with other countries. The top eight diseases causing the most years of life lost in the UK are largely the same as those reported in 1990. These are heart disease, lung cancer, stroke, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, lower respiratory infections, colorectal cancer, breast cancer and self-harm. Compared with the other 18 countries, the UK does worse for premature mortality (years of life lost) for most conditions and its relative position has worsened since 1990. But the UK’s years of life lost rate is significantly better when compared to the average of all the other countries assessed for road injury, diabetes, liver cancer and chronic kidney disease.
