Where New Jersey Ranks Among Unhealthiest States
I’m not sure if I like being lumped into a group being called unhealthy, but the folks at WorldPopulationReview.com studied every state and ranked each one based on how healthy we are.
They say that health is based on an individual’s mental or physical state and being “healthy” of free from any sickness In 1948, the World Health Organization (WHO) defined health with a phrase that modern authorities still apply. “Health is a state of complete physical, mental, and social well-being and not merely the absence of disease or infirmity.” However, they do a deep dive and examine several other factors to come up with their ranking claiming “being healthy is a multifaceted undergoing that looks different for everyone in each region. It’s also measured differently for everyone.”
This is true, you and I and many people we see every day are doing things to positively alter our health. We’re exercising, watching what we eat, talking care of our skin and many other techniques to help ourselves not only feel, but look better. World Population Review reports that the first, physical fitness, “has many different definitions and depends completely on who you ask…health levels and statistics are not uniform across all 50 states.”
The United Health Foundation ranks obesity as the most common disease in the country with three states, Mississippi, Alabama and Virginia having the highest rate of the disease. The World Health Organization defining it as “abnormal or excessive fat accumulation that presents a risk to health.”
So where does New Jersey rank? New Jersey is number six on the list with an obesity percentage of 27.7, a frequent mental distress percentage of 12.3, and a multiple chronic conditions percentage of 7.4. New York falls at number 9 with an obesity percentage of 26.3, a frequent mental distress percentage of 12.3, and a multiple chronic conditions percentage of 7.4. Our neighbors in Pennsylvania landed at number 34 with an obesity percentage of 31.5, a frequent mental distress percentage of 14.2, and a multiple chronic conditions percentage of 11.3.
If you’re wondering which states finished ahead of New Jersey, they are Vermont, Idaho, Connecticut, Hawaii and Massachusetts.