Women's life expectancy has dropped for the first time in 20 years.

April 17, 2015

For the first time in almost two decades, the life expectancy of women in the United Kingdom has fallen. Experts say that poor lifestyle choices and inadequate care are to blame.

Similar life expectancy drops may be in store for Australian men and women, according to Michael Moore, CEO of the Public Health Association of Australia, as well as Vice President and President Elect of the World Federation of Public Health Associations.

“I think that what we’re seeing here is going to be repeated across the world,” says Mr. Moore. This shouldn’t come as a shock, either.

“Many public health associations have been warning, for a number of years, that our life expectancy is going to decline.”

Mr. Moore said that the reason behind this potential fall in life expectancy for men and women “is, more than anything, around lifestyle, particularly obesity. We can’t expect to continue an increasing life expectancy without changing the way we eat, the way we drink, and smoke.”

“We are simply getting more obese,” Mr. Moore stated. “It’s a combination of obesity, and lack of exercise. So what we really need to do, if we want to continue to get better life expectancy, is to address these issues.” (Post continues after gallery.)

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BreadKATIE THOMSITT, Dieticians Australia spokesperson says: "Lots of people shy away from bread to achieve weight loss. But bread is such an important source of fibre, and plays such a helpful role in weight loss and preventing bowel cancer. A couple of slices of a dark, seedy bread per day is absolutely fine."

CheeseKATIE SAYS: "Cheese is definitely a higher fat source of dairy, but still a good dairy fat. Choose low-fat options if you have it regularly, otherwise consume it in moderation. One serve of dairy is 30g, so a couple of slices is absolutely fine."

ChocolateKARA LANDAU, The Travelling Dietician says: "Studies have been able to show that dark chocolate can improve insulin sensitivity, reduce blood pressure in healthy individuals, protect against heart disease, and improve HDL good cholesterol (not a bad start for such a tasty food!). Dark chocolate also contains polyphenols, whilst white chocolate does not. These polyphenolic compounds are able to relax blood vessels allowing for better blood circulation, and thereby assisting with the maintenance of healthy blood pressure levels."

CoffeeKATIE SAYS: "Coffee is a really good snack, in particular if its milk-based to get the dairy in - for example, a skim latte. As long as its in moderation - daily guidelines say a maximum of three per day! And you want lots of water on top of that."

EggsKARA SAYS: "Yes, even the yolks are good for you! Healthy fat soluble vitamins, as well as half the protein found in an egg, are all found in the yolk!"

Avocado KATIE SAYS: "Avocado is a healthy fat. Lots of people think its high-fat and not good for you, but its rich in mono unsaturated fats, which give you protection against heart disease. It also helps with controlling lower cholesterol levels."

nutsKATIE SAYS: "Nuts fall into the same category as avocado - they have lots of healthy oils and fibre."

dairyKARA SAYS: "Often milk and yoghurts are fortified with Vitamin D (a fat soluble vitamin) which requires a small amount of fat to be present in order for the body to absorb it, therefore having the full fat variety can be of value to enhance the nutritional benefits from the products' consumption. The fat in the dairy also aids with satiety, which could prevent unhealthy snacking at a later point in the day."

PotatoKATIE SAYS: "Potato always gets a bad rap as a starchy vegetable, but it's an excellent source of fibre. Sweet potato in particular is great for weight management and sugar level control. Potatoes are also really rich in potassium."

Red meatKARA SAYS: People tend to restrict red meat unnecessarily, thinking that its high in saturated fat. "But lean red meat is high in protein, CLA (which has been found to be associated with lower body fat percentages), B12, iron and zinc. These are all nutrients we want to get into our body!"

In the recent report published by Public Health England (PHE) , it was found that, in 2012, the life expectancy of women in the UK aged 65, 75, 85 and 95 had fallen.

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For example, in 2011, a woman aged 65 could expect to live for another 21 years. In 2012, however, a woman of the same age could expect to live for only 20 years and 47 weeks. Similar figures – of life expectancy dropping by a few weeks, or a couple of months – was reflected in the ascending age groups.

This was the first time since 1995 that a drop in women’s life expectancy has been recorded, in the UK. Prior to these recent findings, life expectancies for women were on the rise.

Image: iStock. Experts say that the lowered life expectancy for women may be due to them adopting the smoking and drinking habits of men.

The PHE has been hesitant to draw too many conclusions on this data, suggesting merely that the fall in life expectancy was due to cold weather, the flu and even statistical blips.

However, experts have other theories. Professor John Ashton, president of the UK Faculty of Public Health, suggested that the fall in older women’s life expectancy was due to poor lifestyle choices.

He told The Telegraph, “One of the issues we have seen is women living lifestyles becoming more like those of men over recent decades, with more smoking and drinking,” he said. He also cited the “failure” of governments to provide adequate care for the elderly.

Caroline Abrahams, the charity director of Age UK, agrees with this sentiment, also telling The Telegraph that “The most obvious likely culprit is the rapid decline of state-funded social care in recent years, which is leaving hundreds of thousands of older people to struggle on alone at home without any help.”

Here's hoping that Australian men and women will pay attention to these figures, and change their lifestyles, in order to save their own lives.

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