Soho is the least healthy neighbourhood to live in the country, new research has revealed.
The area of London’s West End is known for its vibrant nightlife and has no shortage of pubs, restaurants and takeaways.
But there’s not enough parks and green spaces and is filled with air pollution.
More deprived parts of the country are saturated with chippies and betting shops while rural towns and villages have less access to health services, according to the study.
Researchers at the University of Liverpool used a wife range of lifestyle and environmental measures to work out the healthiest and least healthy parts of the UK.
Factors including access to fast food outlets, off licences and boozers and proximity to health services, parks and recreational spaces.
But it’s good news for the people of Great Torrington, in North Devon, which has been crowned the the healthiest place to live in the country.
The small market town has low levels of pollution, plenty of green spaces, good access to health services and not many unhealthy high street outlets.
All of the other top ten healthy places to live were in Scotland, including Lochwinnoch in Renfrewshire, Fauldhouse in West Lothian, Foxbar in Renfreshire and Marnoch in North Lanakrshire.
Out of the top ten most unhealthy neighbourhoods, six were located in inner London with others including Shotley Gate near Ipswich and areas around Immingham, Humberside.
Top 10 unhealthiest places in the UK
1. Soho, Westminster
2. North Killingholme
3. Shotley Gate, Suffolk
4. St. Giles, Camden
5. Bank, City of London
6. Spitalfields, Tower Hamlets
7. Farringdon, Islington
8. Ottringham, East Riding
9. Finsbury, Islington
10. Barbican, City of London
The University worked with the Consumer Data Research Centre and Public Health England to pull together a raft data including air pollution statistics from the Environment Agency and information from GP surgeries, health centres, fast food shops.
Senior Lecturer in Health Geography, Dr Mark Green said: ‘The statistics reveal important insights about the concentration of certain amenities that may be damaging or promote health.’
He said on average, Brits are just as close to a pub or a bar as they are to their nearest GP (1.1km) and 42 per cent are within 1km from a gambling outlet.
Top 10 healthiest places in the UK
- Great Torrington, Devon
- Lochwinnoch, Renfrewshire
- Fauldhouse, West Lothian
- Foxbar, Renfrewshire
- Marnoch, North Lanarkshire
- Ryton, Gateshead
- Ballingry, Fife
- Coupar Angus, Perth and Kinross
- Kinghorn, Fife
- Kilsyth Bogside, North Lanarkshire
Dr Green added: ‘These statistics reveal troubling issues with the neighbourhoods we live in and how they may be damaging to our health.’
Deputy Director of the Consumer Data Research Centre Professor Alex Singleton said: ‘Our study found that access was not evenly spread across Great Britain – rural areas have poorer access to many health services, and those services which are seen as damaging to health are often concentrated in poorer areas.
‘For example, 62 per cent of people who live in the 10 per cent most deprived areas are within 1 km of a fast food outlet compared to 24 per cent in the 10 per cent least deprived areas.’
Use this interactive map to find out how healthy your neighbourhood is.
The findings of the study will be officially presented for the first time at the International Medical Geography Symposium in Queenstown, New Zealand on Monday.
