High streets hosting too many “unhealthy” businesses such as betting shops, fast-food outlets and off-licences are an indicator of a shorter life expectancy among local people, according to a study.
The Royal Society for Public Health found that residents of towns with lots of bookies and off-licences were dying younger than those in towns with plenty of libraries and pharmacies.
It ranked 70 high streets and found those living in the top ten healthy areas lived an average of two and a half years longer than those in the ten “unhealthiest” high streets — with Grimsby the worst, followed by Walsall and Blackpool.
