WHEN it comes to living a long, healthy life, the outlook for Scottish men appears to be going backwards.

Figures released by the Office for National Statistics (ONS) show girls north of the Border can expect to lead healthier lives today than girls born a decade ago.

Projections for Scottish females are not far behind the rest of the UK - with a girl born between 2009 and 2011 expected to stay healthy into her mid-60s.

For her male counterpart, however, the picture is not so rosy.

A baby boy born in Scotland between 2009 and 2011 is predicted to have more years of poor health at the end of his life than a boy born 10 years earlier.

According to the ONS analysis, published yesterday, the younger generation can expect their health to deteriorate before they reach the age of 62. This compares to 63.2 in Wales and 64.7 in England. Only men from Northern Ireland fare worse, with health declining at 58.

Brian Sloan, chief executive of Age Scotland, described the situation as worrying. The charity has released the results of a survey of Scottish adults today which show health is treasured above all else. When asked to list three things that would help make life fulfilling, 77 per cent of people said being in good health, 63 per cent said seeing friends and family often and 52 per cent said having enough money to support themselves and do the things they enjoy.

A spokesman for ONS said: "Looking at the UK as a whole, the health status for both genders has improved between 2000-02 and 2009-11, with the proportion of life spent in 'good' health increasing by 2.6 per cent for females and 1.7 per cent for males."

But he said "the data suggests the health status for males at birth in Scotland has worsened" during the decade. It is estimated the younger cohort of Scottish men will spend an extra 1.1 years in poor health, compared to their elders.

Scotland is also the only country within the UK where women live significantly longer without experiencing disability than men. ONS expects Scottish women to enjoy an extra 2.5 years free of disabilities, compared to Scottish men.

With the growing elderly population, healthy life expectancy has become an important area of research alongside life expectancy.

Mr Sloan said: "It is worrying to see that men's healthy life expectancy has not increased by as much as life expectancy over the past decade."

He said projects such as Men's Sheds and Walking Football were proving successful in tacking loneliness and isolation in later life, a contibutor to ill-health among men.

Age Scotland is hosting a conference today to discuss wellbeing in later life.

The Scottish Government said health was improving overall, and that reducing the gap between those living in Scotland's most deprived and affluent communities was one of the greatest challenges. A spokeswoman added: "We are continuing to encourage active living, healthy eating, and promote positive mental health."