Healthy brains AND healthy bodies

Last month we learned that Washington ranks third for healthy brains and that the Seattle-Tacoma area ranks as the 7th smartest metropolitan area in the nation. This week we got another high mark as one of the healthiest states.

America`s Health RankingsTM rated Washington as the 11th healthiest state in the country—up from number 13 last year. The report has tracked the health of the nation for the past 20 years, providing a unique, comprehensive perspective on how the nation - and each state - measures up.

A wide range of factors are taken into account to determine a state’s health ranking including infant mortality rates, deaths from heart disease and cancer, smoking and obesity rates, education, pollution and violent crime.

These “health determinants” are good indicators of whether the health status of a state’s residents is likely to improve or grow worse.

Our state scored well because, among other things, only 15.7 percent of Washingtonians smoke – a pretty significant difference from 21.4 percent just ten years ago. Also, the percentage of children in poverty declined from 19.1 percent to 13.2 percent during the past five years, and the infant mortality rate in Washington is 4.9 deaths per 1,000 live births.

But if we want to get a better ranking next year, it’s time to start burning calories and eating healthy foods – in only 20 years the prevalence of obesity among Washingtonians has increased from 9.4 percent to 26.0 percent.

Vermont ranked first this year thanks in part to its low rate of obesity, high number of doctors and a low rate of child poverty, and Mississippi came in last for the ninth consecutive year.

Go to this interactive map to see how other states ranked.