Pretty healthy. According to a study by United Health, Utah ranks number 7 in the country for healthiest state. Perhaps it doesn’t come to much of a surprise. Utah, ranked by The Street, is the most sober state in the entire country. Also with the mountains nearby, Utahan’s are ranked among the most active people in the country. With skiing, mountain biking, and hiking nearby, and, with Utah being the 5th most bike friendly state in the country.
We are an active people. Which is one of the reasons why we are so healthy. The United Health survey is divided into five categories:
- Behavioral – smoking, excessive drinking, and drug use.
- Community – violent crime, on-the-job fatalities, and infectious disease.
- Policy – immunizations.
- Health Care – percentage of people on health care.
- Outcomes – measuring the amount of people who have diabetes, and the population/doctor ratio.
According to the study, Utah does very well in the following areas:
- Utah has the lowest rate of diabetes in the country. About 7.1 % of the population of Utah suffers from Diabetes. This is compared with West Virginia, having the highest rate of Diabetes at 14.3%
- Utah has the lowest rate of smokers with only 9.7% of the population smoking. This is again compared with West Virginia with over 24% of the population actively smoking.
- Utah ranks 3rd in being most active. 16.8% of the population reported that they haven’t exercised in 30 days. Compared to West Virginia, 28.5% reported to not exercising.
- Utah also boasts having the lowest cancer deaths in the entire country.
But Utah has been healthier. Other reports have ranked Utah as the 3rd healthiest state in previous years. Despite being 7th in the nation, it is far from perfect. Here is where Utah is lagging:
- Utah ranks 47 concerning drug related deaths.
- The proportion of doctors to the population is among the lowest in the country.
- Utah also has some of the lowest immunization rates in the country.
All things considered, Utah is a pretty healthy place. According to the Huffington Post, Utah has the second lowest health insurance rates on average. This means, if you are living in Utah, chances are your insurance provider is taking advantage of you. At Christensen and Hymas, a Salt Lake City based law firm, we will do everything in our power to help you enjoy the benefits of being healthy, even if you’ve been involved in an accident.