In 2013, the National Research Council and the Institute of Medicine published a report showing that Americans die earlier and experience poorer health than residents of other high-income countries, such as Australia, Finland, and Japan. Though such international comparisons are concerning, health differences within the United States are even larger. Studies have found, for instance, that in many American cities life expectancy varies by as much as 20 years between neighborhoods.
A recent study by researchers at Virginia Commonwealth University (VCU) in collaboration with the Urban Institute, “The Health of the States,” takes a deep dive into these U.S. health disparities and the factors shaping them. The study examined states’ data on 39 different health outcomes, such as mortality, sexually transmitted diseases, and diabetes, and measured how strong they correlated with 123 health determinants, such as smoking, neighborhood walkability, and income level.
VCU launched a summary of the results in October 2016, and has since been periodically rolling out “spotlights” on particular life stages, such as birth and adolescence. Last week, the university published the seventh spotlight—out of a total of nine—on how adults report their health status. While the results of the study naturally vary according to the data being considered, the research revealed a number of broad trends.
[For more on this story by MIMI KIRK, go to https://www.citylab.com/soluti...ealthy-state/542277/]
Photo: Factors like income level matter more than behavior in determining health. (Charles Dharapak/AP)
Comments (0)