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British cities' health habits exposed

10 December 2008

As the Government spends £30 million to create nine “healthy towns” across the UK in a drive to combat obesity, new research shows Britain’s biggest cities have health battles of their own to fight. In London, more people eat takeaways and fast food at least once a week than in any other city surveyed, Manchester tips the scales by having the highest proportion who consider themselves overweight, while in Leeds, less than one in four takes the recommended daily exercise.

These findings form just part of a survey of Britain’s top 10 cities by Bupa UK Health Insurance, looking at every aspect of people’s health and wellbeing from stress, diet, exercise, drinking, to sleep and number of visits to the doctor.

Bupa’s survey also shows that Newcastle and Glasgow are the smoking hot spots with around a quarter of people still lighting up, compared to around one in 10 people in Manchester. Brighton is ranked highest for the number of people who regularly or always drink more than the recommended alcohol limit per week. Meanwhile, of the cities surveyed, London has the highest proportion of stressed people with half feeling under pressure.

It’s not all bad news. Birmingham tops the table when it comes to daily exercise, and if you want a good night’s sleep, head for Brighton where around two-thirds of people get seven or more hours a night. Leeds has the highest proportion of people going to the doctor, with one in four visiting their GP five or more times in the last year. Newcastle comes out on top for dental care with 69 percent of people going to the dentist at least twice a year.

Dr Paula Franklin, deputy medical director for Bupa UK Health Insurance, said: “Britain’s health and wellbeing varies widely from one part of the country to the next, but it doesn’t have to be such a lottery. Simple lifestyle changes can make a dramatic change to your health, wherever you live. Taking regular exercise, eating a healthy balanced diet, learning to relax and sleep more will all have a big impact.”

Bupa has a series of free health factsheets to help you stay fit and healthy. Just visit bupa.co.uk/health for your copy.

Bupa’s 2008 Healthy Cities Survey hot spots:

Stress / Sleep:
• London has the highest proportion of stressed people (50 percent), while Glasgow has the least (36 percent)
• Worry hot and cold spots: Manchester worries most about rising crime (64 percent) and the credit crunch (58 percent). Brighton has the highest proportion concerned about family health (69 percent) but the lowest proportion worried about terrorism (21 percent). London has the highest proportion anxious about job security (36 percent), while Norwich has the lowest proportion worried about personal health (39 percent)
• Brighton has the highest proportion of people who get seven or more hours sleep per night (67 percent). Of all the cities surveyed, London has the highest proportion who get less than seven hours (54 percent)
Exercise:
• Birmingham tops the survey with the highest proportion of people who exercise every day – 42 percent, compared to less than one in four people (23 percent) in Leeds.
• 40 percent of Londoners are motivated by a better sex life to get fit, 78 percent of people in Birmingham rate improvements to health as their biggest motivation, while Cardiff has the lowest proportion (42 percent) who say they are motivated to be fit to lose weight.
• London leads the way in the cities surveyed, for the number of people who have gym and sports club membership (34 percent) – Leeds has the lowest proportion (20 percent)
Drinking / Smoking:
• Brighton has the highest proportion of people who regularly or always drink more than the recommended alcohol limit per week – nearly one in four (23 percent). A fifth (21 percent) of drinkers in Newcastle also exceed the limit to the same extent. Leeds and Norwich have the lowest proportion – just seven percent each.
• Around a quarter (26 percent) of people in Glasgow and Newcastle smoke – Manchester has the lowest proportion (11 percent)
Healthy Eating / Weight:
• Manchester has the highest proportion of people who think they are overweight (49 percent) – Norwich has the lowest (28 percent)
• Norwich has the highest number of people who eat five or more portions of fruit and vegetables a day (39 percent) – only around a quarter (27 percent) in Manchester do.
• London is the fast food capital with 54 percent of people eating takeaway and fast food at least once a week – Norwich has the lowest proportion (33 percent)
GP / Dentist visits:
• Leeds has the highest proportion of people who visit the GP most – 28 percent of people have been to see their doctor five or more times in the past 12 months. In Brighton one in four (25 percent) have not seen their GP at all over the same period.
• Newcastle tops the dental care league with 69 percent of people visiting the dentist at least twice a year. In contrast, 18 percent of Londoners can’t remember the last time they visited the dentist.

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