Looking after your own health is one of the best investments you can make for your future. From getting regular exercise to cutting down your alcohol intake, there are plenty of decisions you can make to improve your health.
While we may be most concerned with bringing you options for buying affordable medication online, we are also interested in helping you to maintain your overall health.
With this in mind, we wanted to find out if your health can be impacted by where you live. Are there some US states where you are more likely to lead a healthy lifestyle than others?
Our investigation looked at a range of factors, from the prevalence of smokers to the number of residents looking for fitness classes. Looking at all of our factors, we were able to award a health score to each state to find out which states are the healthiest.
Combining every factor, we were able to award a health score out of 10 to each state, so which states secured the highest scores to be crowned the healthiest states?
/10 health score
Located in the Pacific Northwest, Washington state can be crowned as the healthiest US state with an impressive health score of 8.40/10. With more than 23% of surveyed residents reporting that they are in excellent health and an average life expectancy of 80 years, this is a particularly healthy state.
Read more/10 health score
Following incredibly close behind Washington, with a score of 8.36/10, the state of Massachusetts takes the second spot in our ranking of healthy states. Massachusetts is an education hub, with some of the highest-rated colleges in the country, namely Harvard University and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
/10 health score
As the country’s fastest-growing state, it is great to see Utah in the top three healthiest states in the US. This state has the least income inequality in the country, so it seems as though residents have good access to great healthcare and fitness activities.
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Obesity is a complicated problem, causing a number of health problems and putting people at higher risk of a multitude of illnesses and diseases. With this being such an important factor in the overall health of a person, we wanted to know which states have the lowest rates of obesity.
obesity rate
As the home of incredible natural beauty, it’s no surprise that Colorado has the lowest obesity rates as residents have plenty of opportunities to get moving outside in nature.
obesity rate
Ranking second overall, Massachusetts also takes second place when it comes to the lowest obesity rates with 24.4% of residents self-reporting as obese.
obesity rate
As another state with endless natural beauty, Hawaii is the perfect state to be active in. This has undoubtedly aided in keeping obesity rates down, with less than a quarter of residents self-reporting as obese.
We all know just how detrimental to health smoking can be, but which states engage in the habit the least?
cigarette smokers
Utah is a deeply religious state so it’s no surprise to see that there are certain vices that they are less likely to partake in. With just 7.9% of residents identifying as cigarette smokers, this is sure to boost their overall health.
cigarette smokers
The state is home to Hollywood and some of the wealthiest residents in the entire country, and with only 10% smoking cigarettes, Californians clearly have their health in mind.
cigarette smokers
Massachusetts appears in the top three yet again, this time for being home to just 12% of residents who smoke cigarettes. Another win for the state which scores so well overall.
One of the biggest aims of maintaining your health is to lead a long and happy life, but which states have the highest average life expectancy?
average life expectancy
We’ve already discussed how wealth can be closely linked to health, so it should come as no surprise that a state with an economy larger than all but four countries would have the longest life expectancy in the United States.
average life expectancy
With an average life expectancy of 80.9 years, Hawaii sits in joint first place alongside California. As this state has some of the lowest obesity rates, it’s easy to see how they also rank at the top for life expectancy.
average life expectancy
New Yorkers may have more of a busy and bustling lifestyle than other rural states, but that doesn’t mean that they suffer in terms of life expectancy. Living 80.7 years on average, New York takes third place amongst the states with the highest life expectancy.
By looking at Google searches for a number of different types of exercise classes such as CrossFit, kickboxing, and yoga, we were able to discover which states have the largest proportion of residents looking to get fit.
fitness class searches per 100,000 people
Massachusetts takes another top three spot, this time for having the highest number of people searching for fitness classes per 100,000. Over the past 12 months, 127,840 searches were made for a number of fitness classes, equating to 1,830 searches per 100,000 people.
fitness class searches per 100,000 people
As neighbors of Massachusetts, Rhode Islanders follow closely behind the top scorers, boasting 19,070 total searches for the past 12 months, equating to 1,741 searches per 100,000.
fitness class searches per 100,000 people
Completing this northeastern top three is the state of New York where a total of 297,690 searches were made over the past 12 months for terms such as ‘Zumba class near me’ and ‘spinning class near me’.
Looking at the percentage of adults who achieve at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity, we were able to discover the most active states.
of adults exercise every week
Taking the top spot as the most active state is Montana where 63.1% of adults spend at least 150 minutes a week exercising, or 75 minutes doing high-intensity aerobic activity. Spending time getting the heart pumping can improve health drastically, helping to maintain a healthy metabolism.
of adults exercise every week
Tied for third place is our overall healthiest state, Washington. Here, 59.3% of adults manage to get in weekly aerobic physical activity, supporting their overall health and helping them to take the top spot overall.
of adults exercise every week
Tied for third place is our overall healthiest state, Washington. Here, 59.3% of adults manage to get in weekly aerobic physical activity, supporting their overall health and helping them to take the top spot overall.
of adults exercise every week
Also taking third place is the state of Colorado where you can find the Southern Rocky Mountains and the western edge of the Great Plains. The natural beauty of the state no doubt encourages residents to get outdoors and exercise.
Alcohol can have a huge impact on health, both mental and physical. Excessive drinking can lead to a number of long-term health issues such as high blood pressure, heart disease, and a weakening of the immune system.
of adults binge drinking
Utah took the top spot for the fewest cigarette smokers, and earns first place again, this time for the lowest number of adults binge drinking. In Utah, more than half of the population are Mormon, a religion that prohibits the consumption of alcohol and tobacco, so it is no surprise to see the state taking the top spot for both of these factors.
of adults binge drinking
As part of the Bible Belt, Oklahoma is another deeply religious state, with conservative values being widespread across the state. This may contribute to their low prevalence of binge drinking, giving them joint second place.
of adults binge drinking
Tieing for second place is another state situated in the Bible Belt is the state of Alabama. In fact, the top five states with the lowest rates of binge drinking include four which are located in the Bible Belt.
Eating a balanced diet is essential to maintaining good health. It is widely accepted that you should eat at least five portions of fruit or vegetables every day, but which states are seeing the highest rates of residents managing to eat at least one portion of fruit or veg every day? We looked at the prevalence of people eating fruit one or more times per day and people eating vegetables one or more times per day, taking an average of both of these to discover which states have the best diets.
of people eating fruit or veg every day
In Vermont, an average of 68.2% of people are eating fruit at least once a day and a huge 87.5% of people are eating vegetables at least once a day, resulting in an overall average of 77.85%, earning them the top spot.
of people eating fruit or veg every day
Maine follows closely behind with 64.8% eating fruit every day and 87.5% eating vegetables every day.
of people eating fruit or veg every day
Massachusetts appears in another top three, this time due to their balanced diets. In this state, 67.3% eat fruit every day and 84.5% eat vegetables every day.
In a 2020 CDC survey, respondents were asked ‘how is your general health?’, but which state had the highest proportion of residents whose response was ‘excellent’?
of people with excellent health
We ranked Massachusetts second overall for healthiest states, and with 26% of respondents in the state stating that their general health is excellent, it comes as no surprise.
of people with excellent health
Taking joint first place is the state of Colorado, a state that has appeared in a number of our top three states for factors such as the least obese states and the most active states.
of people with excellent health
Rounding out the top three states with excellent health is Connecticut. This state ranks fifth overall with a health score of 7.82/10.
Looking at all 50 states, we collated data from the CDC on the following factors:
Prevalence of self-reported obesity source
Current cigarette use among adults source
Life expectancy at birth source
Percent of adults who achieve at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-intensity aerobic physical activity or 75 minutes a week of vigorous-intensity aerobic activity (or an equivalent combination) source
Prevalence of self-reported obesity source
Prevalence of binge drinking among adults aged 18 and over source
Respondents who have consumed fruit one or more times per day source
Respondents who have consumed vegetables one or more times per day source
Respondents who responded ‘excellent’ when asked ‘how is your general health source
When looking at the fruit and vegetable intake, we looked used both scores within our internal ranking system, considering each factor separately. However, in order to look at the states with the best diets, we took an average of each to give an idea of how well balanced diets are within each state.
We also looked at the number of Google searches from July 2021 - June 2022 for the following search terms in each state:
Aerobics class near me
CrossFit class near me
Fitness class near me
HIIT class near me
Kickboxing class near me
Pilates class near me
Spinning class near me
Strength training class near me
Swimming class near me
Yoga class near me
Zumba class near me
The total of these searches was then compared against the state population to discover the searches per 100,000 people. Population numbers were taken from the United States Census Bureau.
With all of these factors, we then applied a ranking based on each factor being given a normalized score out of 10, with an average of all of these scores taken to give each state a final health score out of 10.
Due to a lack of data for a number of factors, the state of New Jersey was omitted from the results.
