Population News: UK life expectancy figures show the difference money makes

UK life expectancy figures show the difference money makes: "

How long do we live? The latest life expectancy estimates show how it varies around the UK
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It has been said that each stop on the District line to east London cuts life expectancy by a year. There are certainly massive differences in the ages Londoners can expect to live, according to data released yesterday by the Office for National Statistics (ONS).

In Kensington and Chelsea, men can expect to live to 84.4 years and women to 89 – the highest figures for both London and the UK. The lowest age for men in the capital is found in Islington, who on average live nine years less, and for women it is Barking and Dagenham, with an eight year difference.

But the UK has much a much bigger gap, between the longest-living part of England's largest city and Scotland's. The ONS figures placed Glasgow city at the bottom of its lists for both men, who in the period 2007-09 recorded an average age of death of 71.1 years, and women, who lived on average to 77.5. That means lifespan differences between Kensington and Chelsea and Glasgow of 13.3 years for men and 11.5 for women.

West Dunbartonshire, which includes the north-west of greater Glasgow, was the second worst area for both genders, and Scottish areas dominate the bottom of the tables for both men and women. And according to historic data released by ONS, the gaps are getting wider (see SmartHealthcare.com article for details). So what is wrong with health in Scotland?

It isn't low spending: Scotland's independently run NHS spends significantly more per person than England, although some of this is soaked up by the range of remote locations it has to serve. Wealth has a lot to do with it – as the figures from London's boroughs suggest – but Glasgow is not uniquely downtrodden compared to some areas in Wales and the Midlands and north of England. In fact, when compared to the other nations and regions of the UK, Scotland has low levels of poverty.

Some of Glasgow's and Scotland's low mortality ages seem to be down to specific health issues. A report published for the Scottish government in August found much higher levels of drinking (men drink 6.2 units a day north of the border, 4.3 in England), more smokers, fewer people eating the recommended five portions a day of fruit and vegetables and higher rates of obesity.

From an English perspective, the Scottish National Party's aim to introduce public health measures such as minimum pricing for alcohol may sound like the actions of party-poopers. But the figures on ages of death in Glasgow and in Scotland overall suggest otherwise.

SA Mathieson edits Guardian News & Media's health IT website SmartHealthcare.com