Map reveals heart disease hotspots where you’re most likely to die young – are you at risk?

PEOPLE in Blackpool are three times more likely to die young from heart disease than those living in the richest part of England, a charity has warned.

Analysis by the British Heart Foundation (BHF) shows the seaside resort has an under-75 mortality rate of 133 per 100,000, compared with just 40 in Hart, Hampshire – the least deprived area in the country.

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Manchester (125), Barking and Dagenham in east London (124), Nottingham (120) and Hull (118) also appeared on the list of “heart disease hotspots”.

Among the top 10 least deprived local authorities where early mortality is low are Waverley in Surrey (47), Mid Sussex (48), Elmbridge in Surrey (49) and St Albans in Hertfordshire (50).

Charmaine Griffiths, chief executive of the BHF, said: “It is shameful in this day and age that someone can be at a much higher risk of dying young from cardiovascular disease just because of where they live and how much money they have.

“We are in the midst of a historic heart crisis. Without urgent action, the disparity in heart health between the richest and poorest will continue to widen further.

“More people will lose loved ones to heart disease through no fault of their own.

“This is not a problem that can be solved overnight, but we can start to make progress if politicians make heart disease a key health priority.

“This could save countless lives, helping to keep families together longer in all communities.”

The charity said more research is needed to fully understand the trend, but it is likely linked to poverty, pollution, obesity, food choices, Covid and ongoing pressure on the NHS.

The latest figures reveal that premature deaths from heart disease will reach their highest level in a decade in 2022 – an average of 79 per 100,000 people.

The most deprived 10% of areas had a death rate of 109 per 100,000 people, compared to 50 in the richest 10%.

This number increased from 94 per 100,000 in the most deprived areas and 45 per 100,000 in the least deprived in 2019.

This means that today, Britons living in the 10 poorest areas of England are twice as likely to die from cardiovascular problems, such as heart attacks, before they turn 75, than people in the 10 richest areas.

Men living in the most deprived areas recorded the biggest increase in premature deaths, rising from 129 per 100,000 to 153.

This is almost double the country’s average.

The BHF says immediate action is needed to stop the health gap between rich and poor from widening.

This includes: better preventing heart disease and stroke, prioritizing NHS cardiac care and stepping up cardiovascular research to unlock innovative new treatments and cures.

Sonya Babu-Narayan, associate medical director at the BHF, said: “We have long known that there is a well-established link between heart health and wealth, but too many lives are still being lost too young at heart. illness due to this injustice.

“People living in the poorest areas can face poverty, pollution, fewer healthy and affordable food choices, as well as poorer living and working conditions.

“Meanwhile, people in wealthier areas tend to have better outcomes and better access to healthy lifestyles.

“The heart health gap between rich and poor is now widening at an alarming rate, and it is happening at a time when the NHS is already struggling to address a huge backlog of urgent heart care.

“Urgent intervention is long overdue to prevent heart disease from occurring and to make heart care better, faster and fairer for everyone.”

In January 2023, the government announced a Key Conditions Strategy to tackle the biggest drivers of poor health and early death in England, including cardiovascular disease.

It should be published in full later this year.

An interim report published by the Department of Health and Social Care last summer “made clear the scale and urgency” of the rising wave of cardiovascular disease in the UK.