How healthy is New Jersey compared to other states?

We've all heard the old adage, “When you have your health, you have everything. When you do not have your health, nothing else matters at all."

As you get older you realize just how true that statement is. According to a study published by Forbes where they ranked all 50 states, New Jersey did pretty well.

The study measured statistics like life expectancy, percentage of obese adults, heart disease mortality rates. cancer rates, chronic liver disease, diabetes mortality rates along with the percentage of adults who smoke.

The bad news is the rate of chronic disease is projected to increase over the next few decades. Between 2025 and 2060, the number of Americans with diabetes is expected to increase by 39.3%. That's no surprise considering the diet of most Americans.

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That being said, if you've ever traveled to the southern part of the United States, you may notice some pretty big people with some pretty dicey eating habits. It's no wonder a state like West Virginia came in at the top of the list for the unhealthiest state in the country.

They have the highest percentage of adults who smoke (21%) along with the highest percentage of obese adults at 41%. They have the second shortest life expectancy at 73.9 years and the third highest percentage of adults who did not exercise in the past month (30.2%).

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The rest of the states in the top 5 unhealthiest states were all Southern states. Mississippi, Tennessee, Arkansas and Kentucky. The healthiest state was Hawaii, followed by Utah, Connecticut, Minnesota and Massachusetts. They were followed by New Jersey.

We came in the top ten of the healthiest states at number six. The good news is in this Forbes report.

It's good that we've made the top ten on a positive list for a change.

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Opinions expressed in the post above are those of New Jersey 101.5 talk show host Dennis Malloy only.

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