THE North-East has the highest rate of obesity among men in the country, according to a report into the health of the nation.

Information about obesity, smoking and mortality levels are contained in the report, published by the Association of Public Health Observatories of England and Wales (APHO).

The report shows the North-East and Yorkshire and Humberside still lag behind the South in terms of health.

One of the key messages of the report is that there are considerable differences in the health of people in different areas and that much of this variation is linked to deprivation.

The prevalence of smoking in women is described as high in the North-East and North-West, and low in London.

Four areas in the North-East had high mortality rates after adjustments were made for different rates of deprivation -Hartlepool, Gateshead, Sunderland and Darlington.

In 1993, it was calculated that 204 more people died unexpectedly per 100,000 of the population in the North-East each year compared to the South-West.

In 2001, that figure had fallen to 156 "extra deaths" per 100,000 of the population.

In general, mortality rates in England are generally declining. Improvement is ahead of targets set in 1997, although in some local authority areas, the improvement has been slower.

From 1995 to 2001, the national rate of smoking fell from 31.9 per cent to 27.6 per cent in men and from 27.3 per cent to 25.5 per cent in women.

In 2000/2002 the prevalence of obesity in men was high in the North-East and low in London. For women, it was high in the East and West Midlands, and low in the South-East and South-West.