This is a life and death story for the UK so why is it being brushed under the carpet?

"A child born this morning in Britain can expect to be in good health only until they are 61. The last 20 years of their life will be blighted by illness: dodgy hearts, painful joints, an inability to get about. Our healthy life expectancy has been dropping for years; it is now the lowest since 2011, when records began."

"For most of the past 100 years, the UK and other rich countries have made outstanding progress on life expectancy. Year after year, decade after decade, the outlook has just kept getting better. Whereas a century ago the average life expectancy was about 50, today you can hope to live into your 80s. And now in Britain one of the great success stories in human history is going into reverse."

"Over the past 15 years, improvements in life expectancy have essentially stalled, while our allotment of healthy life is getting shorter. If our health and life expectancy is in decline, it's about as clear a sign as you can get that our society faces fundamental challenges."

Britain faces a critical health crisis that receives insufficient media attention. Recent Office for National Statistics data reveals that children born today can expect only 61 years of good health, with their remaining 20+ years likely affected by illness such as heart disease and joint problems. This represents a dramatic reversal of a century-long trend of improving life expectancy. While average life expectancy has increased from 50 years a century ago to the 80s today, healthy life expectancy has been declining for 15 years. This stagnation in health improvements signals serious underlying problems in society's wellbeing and represents one of the most significant public health challenges facing Britain.

Read at www.theguardian.com