Life expectancy is rising, with the rates for men increasing faster than those for women.
It is thought that men are now living healthier lifestyles, which are contributing to the figures. The fact that there are fewer male smokers also life expectancy data for men.
If current trends continue, the statistic show that both sexes would, on average, be living to the age of 87 in 2030, which means that more people could be in residential care or retirement homes for longer.
Another factor is that jobs these days are generally safer, with men more likely to work in offices rather than down mine shafts.
According to Professor Les Mayhew, an adviser for the Office for National Statistics, the difference peaked in the 1970s, at six years between the two.
Mr Mayhew, a professor of statistics at Cass Business School in London, studied life expectancy data in England and Wales in order to work out how long 30-year-olds could expect to live.
The findings show that men generally came up short compared with women for decades, but now the gap is beginning to close.
