People in Scotland spending more of their lifetime in poor health
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Figures just published by National Records of Scotland (NRS) show the number of years people in Scotland can expect to live in good health has fallen again.
Between 2018 and 2020, average male Healthy Life Expectancy was 60.9 years while it was 61.8 years for females.
Healthy life expectancy has decreased each of the last four years for females and for the last three years for males.
The report, Healthy Life Expectancy 2018 – 2020, also shows that those living in the most deprived communities spend on average 24 years fewer in good health than those living in the least deprived areas.
With those in the most deprived areas also dying younger, they spend more than one third of their lives in poor health.
Statistician Maria Kaye-Bardgett said: “These figures continue a trend we have seen in recent years with healthy life expectancy falling for males and females.
"Healthy Life Expectancy is a key measure of health and wellbeing in Scotland. These figures are useful for those planning services to meet people’s needs.”
Orkney was the area with the highest healthy life expectancy for both males and females (71.2 years and 77.5 years).
The areas with the lowest number of years spent in good health were Inverclyde for males (54.4 years) and North Ayrshire for females (54.0 years).
The National Records of Scotland (NRS) is responsible for producing statistics on Scotland’s population.
The report Healthy Life Expectancy 2018-2020 can be found at the NRS' website.
