Do you smoke? Are you overweight? Do you get regular exercise? Do you have health insurance? Do you have a long commute?
These are just some of the factors examined in a new study that ranks the health of nearly every county in the United States. The annual County Health Rankings & Roadmaps project was created by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute and provides a snapshot of a community's overall health. The goal: help counties understand what influences how healthy residents are and how long they'll live.
The rankings are compiled using more than 20 sources of data, such as the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System. (You can read more about the methods used to develop the rankings here.)
Below you'll find how metro Atlanta counties stack up in the rankings. You can also explore the data for your own county here or use an interactive map showing every Georgia county here.
10. Clayton County
Clayton County's overall health ranks No. 10 among 10 major metro Atlanta counties and comes in at 61st among Georgia's 159 counties, according to the County Health Rankings. Some health measures for Clayton, such as the percentage of people who drink excessively (13 percent), are lower than the statewide rates (16 percent for excessive drinking). However, a deeper dive into the data shows a number of challenges in Clayton. For instance, 40 percent of adults in the county are obese, compared with 29 percent overall in Georgia. And 21 percent of people say their health is poor or fair. That's compared with 17 percent of individuals statewide.
Find out more about how healthy Clayton County is here.
9. Rockdale County
Next on our list is Rockdale County, home to Conyers, which ranks No. 9 for overall health in the metro area and No. 35 in Georgia. Rockdale performs better than the state as a whole in a number of areas. Like Clayton, its rate of excessive drinking (14 percent) is lower, as are the number of teen births. However, it also has health challenges. An estimated 35 percent of adults in Rockdale are obese. And 28 percent report being physically inactive (compared with 25 percent for Georgia as a whole) even though nearly 90 percent of people say they have access to places where they can be active.
Find out more about how healthy Rockdale County is here.
8. DeKalb County
One of Georgia's largest counties and home to Stone Mountain, DeKalb County ranks No. 8 in metro Atlanta and 30th statewide. When it comes to medical care, DeKalb actually performs better than many other counties in the state. For instance, it has more primary care physicians (1 for every 940 residents) than the statewide ratio of 1,540:1. It has more dentists and mental health providers too. It also has slightly lower rates of adults who smoke (14 percent) and who are obese (27 percent), compared with Georgia overall. But DeKalb performs worse than other counties in some areas, such as violent crime and air pollution.
Find out more about how healthy DeKalb County is here.
7. Fulton County
Fulton County is home to roughly 1 million people, according to the latest Census data, ranking No. 7 for health in the metro area and 25th overall in Georgia. Fulton residents have lower rates of smoking (14 percent), obesity (22 percent) and physical inactivity (19 percent) than the state as a whole. Fewer people also report that their health is "poor or fair." Some other measures, however, are a bit worse than the state as a whole -- for example, a higher percentage of people who excessively drink (18 percent), as well as high rates of violent crime and air pollution.
Find out more about how healthy Fulton County is here.
6. Henry County
While Henry County ranks No. 6 in the metro, it comes in at 20th statewide when it comes to overall health. It's uninsured rate (18 percent) for 2013 was lower than the statewide average, as was the number of preventable hospital stays. Henry's ratio of residents to mental health providers, 810:1, is also slightly lower than Georgia's ratio as a whole of 850:1. However, the counties ratios of residents to primary care physicians (2,030:1) and to dentists (3,190:1) are both higher than the statewide ratios.
Find out more about how healthy Henry County is here.
5. Cobb County
Cobb County -- soon to become home to the Braves -- ranks fifth in the metro and No. 7 overall in Georgia. Some 18 percent of Cobb residents report being physically inactive, compared with 25 percent statewide. Meanwhile, 89 percent of people there say they have access to places where they can be physically active, nearly 15 percent higher than the statewide rate. Cobb also has lower rates of adults smoking and obesity than Georgia as a whole. However, the county ranks lower, No. 103 statewide, when it comes to its physical environment. The category includes issues, such as air pollution, severe housing problems and long commutes.
Find out more about how healthy Cobb County is here.
4. Cherokee County
Cherokee County -- home to Lake Allatoona -- comes in at No. 4 in the metro and 6th in Georgia. Eighty percent of people in this county report having access to adequate to places where they can be physically active. That's 5 percent higher than the state as a whole. Cherokee also has a smaller obesity rate, 26 percent, than the state. Its residents also report fewer poor physical and mental health days than statewide. Like Gwinnett, however, Cherokee has worse ratios of doctors and dentists to residents. There are 2920 residents per every one primary care physician.
Find out more about how healthy Cherokee County is here.
3. Gwinnett County
Gwinnett County, one of the most populous counties in Georgia, comes in at No. 3 for the metro area and No. 5 statewide for overall health. The rate of Gwinnett adults who smoke, 14 percent, is lower than the statewide rate of 16 percent. Twenty-one percent of adults age 20 or older say they are physically inactive, compared with 25 percent in the state overall. Clinical care in Gwinnett falls a little short, ranking No. 55 statewide, when it comes to the number of health care providers. Its ratio of residents to primary care physicians is 1,700:1, compared with 1,540:1 overall in the state.
Find out more about how healthy Gwinnett County is here.
2. Fayette County
The overall health of residents in Fayette County ranks No. 2 in metro Atlanta and No. 3 in Georgia. At the same time, Fayette is No. 1 in Georgia when it comes to clinical care. Some 14 percent of its residents are uninsured, versus 21 percent statewide, according to 2013 data. Its ratio of residents to primary care physicians is 910:1. That's better than the top performing counties in America. And the county has one dentist per every 1,090 residents, also better than many counties nationally. Like Forsyth, it does have some challenges, including long commutes and air pollution.
Find out more about how healthy Fayette County is here.
1. Forsyth County
Not only is Forsyth County the overall healthiest county in metro Atlanta, it's also the healthiest county in the entire state. An estimated 26 percent of adults are obese, compared with 29 percent statewide. Some 12 percent of Forsyth residents reported that their health was poor or fair, a measure that helps characterize the burden of disabilities and chronic diseases in a community. Statewide, 17 percent of people say their health is poor or fair. On the downside, nearly half (48 percent) of residents have long commutes to work, driving alone, compared with 39 percent statewide.
Find out more about how healthy Forsyth County is here.
Interested in checking out how other state's performed? Check out all of the County Health Rankings here.
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