Richest 20% will live 25 years in better health than the poorest

Photo: Depositphotos.com
Photo: Depositphotos.com

New figures from national statistics agency CBS show the sharp difference in both life expectancy and good health between the richest and the poorest parts of the Dutch population.

Men with high incomes can expect to live 25 more years in good health than those who live in poverty, while the difference for women is 23 years, the CBS said on Wednesday.

From the age of 65, men from the wealthiest 20% of the population will live a further eight years in good health, and women seven.

The figures come from a new CBS analysis based on population, income and health statistics from between 2017 and 2020.

The life expectancy for boys born in 2021 into the top 20% of wealthy families is now 83, compared with just 74 for those who grew up in a minimum income household. But men born in poverty can expect to live just 49 years in good health, compared with 74 years for their wealthier peers.

Women from the richest 20% of the population will live 86 years, but their poorest peers will live until the average age of 78.

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