Revealed: Hundreds more middle-aged adults are dying every month since Covid ended
Hundreds more middle-aged Brits die every month than expected, with experts blaming unhealthy lifestyles and the NHS crisis due to the increase in deaths.
An additional 28,000 deaths were recorded across Britain in the first six months of the year, or more than 1,000 a week, according to a new analysis of official figures.
The peak in mortality is especially large among people between the ages of 50 and 64, with 15 percent more deaths than normal.
Most of these deaths were caused by largely preventable diseases, including heart disease, liver damage and diabetes.
Experts pointed to Britain's expanding waistline and alcohol consumption, as well as its beleaguered health care system for not treating patients quickly enough.
Separate data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) shows that 15 per cent more 50 to 64-year-olds died than expected in the year to June. There were 64,268 deaths among the group, compared to the expected 55,861 – meaning a further 8,407 fatalities in a year, or about 700 per month
EXCESSIVE DEATHS (UNDER 24 YEARS): Additional fatalities are slightly higher than expected among the youngest cohort in the population
EXCESS DEATHS (25-49): Up to 130 excess deaths per week were recorded among 25 to 49 year olds
EXCESS DEATHS (65-74): Up to 323 excess deaths per week were recorded among 65 to 74 year olds
DEATHS OVERALL (75-84): Additional fatalities among older people in England reached a peak of 638
SATISFACTORY DEATHS (over 85s): The number of deaths above the five-year average rose to 1,181 among the oldest people in England
Data from the Office for National Statistics shows that there were 353,047 fatalities between January and June this year.
This is 28,024, or 8.6 percent, more than the 325,023 expected in that period.
Excess deaths, also called excess deaths, are the number of deaths that are above the average for the same period in previous years.
Separate data from the Office for Health Improvement and Disparities (OHID) shows that 15 per cent more 50 to 64-year-olds died than expected in the year to June.
There were 64,268 deaths among the group, compared to the expected 55,861 – meaning an additional 8,407 fatalities in a year, or about 700 per month.
An analysis of the data, published in The Lancetalso noted that more people die at home than in hospitals.
During the pandemic, the excess deaths were mainly among older adults.
But there is now a pattern of “persistent excess deaths, which are relatively most prominent among middle-aged and younger adults,” the authors wrote.
“Timely and detailed analyzes are needed to describe such trends and thus inform prevention and disease management efforts,” she added.
Dr. Jonathan Pearson-Stuttard, head of health analytics at consultancy Lane Clark & Peacock and lead author of the commentary, said: 'Granular insights such as these offer opportunities to mitigate the seemingly ongoing and uneven impact on mortality, and likely the associated consequences for morbidity, for the entire population.'
The report notes that cardiovascular disease is one of the leading causes of excess deaths, while liver disease, acute respiratory infections and diabetes are also fueling this trend.
Anti-vaxxers have claimed the excess deaths are due to the Covid jabs, but scientists insist the jabs, which have saved tens of millions of lives worldwide, are not to blame.
To write The timesProfessor Yvonne Doyle, former medical director of the now defunct Public Health England (PHE), blamed “an underlying pandemic of ill health”.
She said the spike was caused by heart disease, diabetes and cirrhosis – all of which are highly preventable and caused by lifestyle choices such as an unhealthy diet and drinking too much alcohol.
“Unless access to preventive and early treatment improves, these causes of death will continue to persist and will be accompanied by cancer,” Professor Doyle warned.
Noting that Britain is doing worse than many other wealthy countries in the fight against ill health, she criticized the Covid inquiry for focusing 'solely on tactical decision-making by political leaders'.
The inquiry, which is expected to run until 2027 and is estimated to cost more than £156 million, was designed to examine the UK's response to and impact of the pandemic and draw lessons for future crises.
It should focus on improving the health of the people most vulnerable to viruses – those who are obese, diabetic or poor – as This group included a 'disproportionately large number' of Covid deaths, Professor Doyle argued.
She called on the government to encourage people to adopt healthier lifestyles such as exercising daily and avoiding unhealthy food, smoking and drinking too much.
Top doctors have also laid blame ambulance delays, long A&E waiting times, unmet needs during the pandemic and large backlogs of routine NHS care.
More patients than ever are waiting more than 12 hours in A&E, while ambulance response times have plummeted since the pandemic.
Dr. Pearson-Stuttard told it The times that difficulty in reaching GP appointments was a 'less well covered but important factor' as it could mean people missing out on treatment for chronic diseases.
“The diagnosis and treatment of conditions such as high blood pressure have been disrupted over the past three years and later diagnosis and/or poorer treatment increases the risk of acute events such as heart attacks and strokes,” he added.