Men behind women in life expectancy 'by entire generation'

Men are "lagging behind" women in life expectancy, health experts said.

Despite a rise in the length of time the average European person lives, health experts said that men have not yet reached the average level that women had in 1980.

The World Health Organisation's European Health Report, which examines the health status of 53 countries, found that in 2010 the average life expectancy for women was 80 years and 72.5 years for men.

The report says that lifestyle and occupational differences "largely explain this gap".

Dr Ritu Sadana, editor-in-chief of the report, said: "Men are lagging behind women in life expectancy by an entire generation. In 2010, men had not yet reached the average level that women enjoyed in 1980.

"In 2010, women have reached an average of 80 years while men are living on average of 72.5 - a 7.5 year gap across the 53 countries."

In the UK, the average life expectancy in 2010 was 80 years - 82.5 years for females and 78.5 for males.