Death rates in deprived northern wards stuck at 1950s levels

Health inequalities between rich and poor are getting worse, with some northern communities suffering the same death rates as in the 1950s.

Chief medical officer Professor Liam Donaldson used his first annual report to reveal that despite the 'substantial' fall in death rates for the better off - by 28 per cent for the top 10 per cent ofwards - rates in the most deprived areas declined little throughout the 1990s.

Trends in life-expectancy show the gap between the bottom 20 per cent of health authorities and the rest of the population is actually widening.

Professor Donaldson said:

'Action targeted at the poorest section of society will improve those people's health, but it will not alone reduce inequality gaps.

'Action also needs to be targeted at the much larger numbers in the blue collar section of society where the numbers with potentially poor health are much greater.'

Professor Donaldson's report also suggests an increase in 'binge drinking' was to blame for increasing cases of cirrhosis of the liver.The largest increases were in people aged 35 to 44 years, where death rates went up eight-fold in men and almost seven-fold in women. Relatively large increases also occur in younger adults: for 25-34 year-olds, a four-fold increase occurred over the 30year period.