Gap In Life Expectancy Between Richest And Poorest Widens, Study Finds

A new study, published on Thursday evening, also found that life expectancy for the country's poorest women has fallen by three months since 2011.

Researchers at Imperial College London analysed Office for National Statistics data on all 7.65 million deaths recorded in England between 2001 and 2016.

Dr James Pickett, Head of Research at Alzheimer’s Society, said:

'Dementia is already the UK’s biggest killer – it is deeply concerning, while unsurprising, to see today that poorer people are dying so much earlier from the condition.  While the social care system remains in crisis, people who simply can’t afford the costly expense of care are helpless - every person living with the condition has a right to the best quality of life, regardless of their postcode. 

Researchers at Alzheimer’s Society are currently working with a range of communities to understand and improve the quality of life of people living with dementia. We are promoting an understanding of lifestyle changes that can help to reduce the risk of dementia and are producing evidence to call for improvements in the care of people living with the condition. At the same time our Fix Dementia Care campaign is pressing the Government to deliver a properly funded solution for social care. The mortality gap can only be closed through meaningful investment in our social care system, so that high quality care can be provided to deprived communities and we need public health campaigns to increase the public’s understanding of lifestyle changes that reduce the risk of dementia.'