8 of the worst counties in the US for residents' health

The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute in Madison have published "2016 County Health Rankings," an annual list that compares U.S. counties on a number of different health measures.

U.S. News & World Report highlighted the following eight counties whose poor performance in different health measures stood out from the rest.

Obesity
Holmes County, Miss. — 47 percent are obese, compared to 27 percent nationally

Smoking
Shannon County, S.D. — 41.2 percent smoke, compared to 17 percent nationally

Uninsured adults
Hidalgo County, Texas — 51.3 percent are uninsured, compared to 17 percent nationally

Excessive drinking
Mountrail County, N.D. — 27.3 percent binge drink or drink heavily, compared to 18 percent nationally

Physical inactivity
Scott County, Tenn. — 41.7 percent report no leisure-time physical activity, compared to 23 percent nationally

Doctor-to-patient ratio
Dakota County, Neb. — One physician per 20,950 residents, compared to one per 1,329 people nationally

Teen births
Brooks County, Texas — 123.7 teen births per 1,000 girls ages 15 to 19, compared to 35 per 1,000 nationally

Sexually transmitted infections
Shannon County, S.D. — 2,653.1 new chlamydia cases per 100,000 residents, compared to 446.6 per 100,000 nationally

To access the full county health rankings website, click here.

 

 

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