IN THE UNITED KINGDOM GRANTING INFLATION KILLS

This galloping inflation endangers the living conditions of the British, particularly the most vulnerable.

According to a study published on Monday September 25, 2023 in the British medical journal BMJ: “the economy directly influences the health of the population.

“According to this study, the number of early deaths, that is to say before the age of 75, could increase by almost 6.5% due to an increasingly high cost of living.

“14% of the UK population will suffer from food poverty in 2023”.

This crisis “risks shortening lives and significantly widening wealth and health gaps” between the rich and the poor in the United Kingdom, according to projections from this study.

“The poorest households have paid the price, as they spend a larger share of their income on energy, the cost of which has skyrocketed,” the study reads.

Even more alarming, the University of Sussex study indicates that “14% of the UK population will suffer from food poverty in 2023. Access to food in the UK is very unequal”. Being hungry has become the 'new normal' for millions of British households.

Stagnating life expectancy in the United Kingdom

Researchers assessed the impact of inflation on death rates in Scotland in 2022-23 by assessing different scenarios, with and without government measures to alleviate this cost of living crisis, including helping households facing energy costs.

Without any mitigation measures, inflation could increase early deaths by 5% in the least deprived areas and by 23% in the most deprived, according to researchers' projections. With the government's measures, inflation leads to an increase in early deaths of 2% and 8% respectively.

The researchers worked on Scotland, but assure that "similar effects are likely" across the United Kingdom, because they "modeled the impact of measures taken by the British government".

“Our analysis helps demonstrate that the economy has an impact on population health,” the researchers conclude. “Since 2012, economic conditions in the UK have led to a decline in life expectancy and widened health inequalities.”

Far from being optimistic about the evolution of the situation, the Resolution Foundation study concludes by indicating that if the British do not manage to stem inflation, the living conditions of their population could fall to comparable levels to those of the 50s.