Within Wales a significant proportion of the population remain deeply disadvantaged in terms of expectation of life and health-related quality of life, and there are wide variations between those with the poorest health and those with the best. In the last 25 years, death rates from avoidable diseases have fallen steadily and life expectancy has increased. Across Europe, life expectancy at birth for both men and women has increased by about 5 years. Throughout that period, life expectancy in Wales has been amongst the worst in Europe at approximately three to four years less than in the best countries. Life expectancy in some areas of the South Wales Valleys is about five years less than in some other parts of Wales.
Heart disease is the major cause of death in Wales.
Although the death rate in Wales has declined considerably in recent years, it remains substantially higher in Wales and the UK than in many European countries, particularly France, where the rate is approximately one third that in Wales. Premature deaths from various causes vary widely between Local Authority areas. Consistent poor health is seen particularly in the South Wales Valleys. In Blaenau Gwent the death rate for heart disease for people under 65 is twice the rate in Ceredigion. For lung cancer, the death rate in Blaenau Gwent for men under 75 years is around twice that in Powys.bm 2.8.