Research has revealed that a town in Lancashire is officially the UK’s unhealthiest area.
New Office for National Statistics (ONS) data shows Blackpool scored lowest on the official health index – making it the unhealthiest place to live in the country.
A study analysed figures from the ONS, which scored every local authority in England on a number of factors for physical health, mental health, fitness and more; and compared the scores with the national average to see which areas were the ‘most unhealthy’.
The study found that Blackpool is England’s unhealthiest area.
The town scored low on healthy people,healthy lives, and healthy places , which combined gave an overall health score of 91.43, more than eight points below the national average.
Blackpool’s life expectancy score of 75.72 and a low avoidable mortality score of 72.38, were both around 25 points below the national average, andalso scored badly for alcohol misuse and healthy eating.
Manchester came in second place, with an overall score of 92.53, with Kingston-upon-Hull coming third.
Of the top 10 towns and cities, three are in the North West, three are in Yorkshire, three in Midlands, and one is a borough of London.
Other factors taken into consideration in the list included: childhood obesity, frailty, difficulty in daily life, smoking, infant mortality, mental health, physical health conditions, drug misuse, and pupil absences.
The top 10 unhealthiest places in the UK, with their overall health score, are:
- Blackpool:91.43
- Manchester: 92.53
- Hull: 93.09
- Birmingham: 93.19
- Liverpool: 93.49
- Middlesbrough: 94.15
- Nottingham: 94.30
- Bradford:94.48
- Leicester: 94.91
- Barking and Dagenham:94.95
The study was carried out by fitness experts BarBend, with a spokesperson from the company saying: “It’s interesting to see just how many factors go into the health index, and how poorly some areas score in them.
“When data for after the Covid-19 pandemic is prepared, it’s expected that many of these factors, particularly physical and mental health, will fluctuate due to the true unexpectedness of it.”
