Health in Leicestershire is generally better than average when compared to the East Midlands and England. People in Leicestershire have above average life expectancy and low rates of premature mortality from the major killers.
However, good health is spread unevenly across the county. Whilst the pattern of ill health is similar to that for deprivation, it is also influenced by other factors including ethnicity.
The shift towards an older population will have a significant impact on the future health of the population, and diseases such as coronary heart disease, chronic kidney disease, diabetes, stroke and dementia are all projected to rise by over 10% by 2014. This will be exacerbated by increasing levels of obesity.
The major cause of death in adults in Leicestershire is cancer, followed by circulatory disease and accidents. The main causes of death in people over 65 are diseases of the circulatory system, cancers and diseases of the respiratory system. Less than 0.15% of total deaths are 0-14 year olds and the infant mortality level in the County is similar to the national average.
Leicestershire Together is targeting reductions in smoking, teenage pregnancies obesity and preventable accidents, improvements in the county’s mental and sexual health and increases in physical activity and well being.
The delivery plan for a healthier Leicestershire:
- How we are reducing substance misuse among young people (NI 115)
- How we are improving drug treatment services (LI 11, NI 140)
- How we are reducing road causalities (LI 12)
- How we are reducing mortality rates for under 75s (NI 121)
- How we are improving our children's emotional health (NI 50)
- How we are getting more adults to participate in sport (NI 8)
- How we are getting more children to participate in sport (NI 57)
- How we are reducing obesity among under 11s (NI 56)
- How we are getting people to stop smoking (NI 123)
- How we are trying to reduce the number of teenagers who have unplanned pregnancies (NI 112)