A TOTAL of 482 people under the age of 65 died of heart disease in the Bury and Rochdale area from 1997 to 1999, according to new figures.

The figures, published by the British Heart Foundation (BHF), show that 373 men and 109 women died from coronary heart disease (CHD), an average of 50.63 deaths per 100,000 population.

Health authority figures reveal that the north of England tops the heart attack league, but at the same time northern death rates from CHD appear to be falling by more than those reported in the south of England.

The north, north west of England, Yorkshire and Humberside reported a fall of six per cent compared to the south west of England, where the death rate from CHD fell by only three per cent.

Although fewer people are dying from CHD thanks in part to medical advances , the BHF says the total number of people with CHD is not falling. For 2.6 million people in the UK now have coronary heart disease.

Northerners top the smoking league table. Manchester is the north's smoking capital, where four out of ten women smoke.