Is the county you live in shortening your life span? A new study suggests that the Illinois county you live in could have an affect on your health.
The 2015 County Health Rankings compares the health of residents in every county across the nation and evaluates measures that affect the future health of communities, including education, environmental hazards, health behaviors, employment and more. The study, which ultimately determines a county’s residents’ length of life and quality of life, aims to help identify and garner support for local health improvement initiatives.
In Illinois, the healthiest counties include Woodford, Kendall, DuPage, Clinton and Kane. The least healthiest include Franklin, Pulaski, Mason, Pope and Massac counties.
Cook County ranked at no. 64 on the list, an improvement from last year when the county sat at no. 75 out of 102.
In Cook County, an average of 6,794 people die before the age of 75, according to the study. The average in Illinois is 6,349. In addition, at least 17 percent of Cook County residents have poor or fair health. In comparison, premature deaths in DuPage County average 4,195 while 12 percent of residents live in poor or fair health.
The healthiest counties in the nation averaged 10 percent of residents living in poor or fair health with 5,200 premature deaths, according to the data.
The study showed that people living in the least healthy counties were twice as likely to die prematurely than those in the nation's healthiest counties.
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