Study ranks Orlando as Florida’s healthiest city
FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. – Orlando ranked first as Florida’s healthiest city according to a recent study from WalletHub.
The analysis determined that the central Florida city was America’s 23rd and the state’s healthiest city with a score of 56.36. Orlando specifically ranked 9th for fitness, 22nd in food, 49th for green space, and 61st in health care.
In its findings, WalletHub compared data from more than 180 U.S. cities across 41 key indicators of good health for its findings. They include cost of a medical visit, fruit and vegetable consumption, and share of physically active adults.
“Staying healthy is a personal responsibility, and everyone should strive to eat nutritious food, exercise regularly and look after their mental health,” WalletHub Analyst Cassandra Happe said. “However, where people live can have a big influence on how successful they are at staying in good health, so the best cities are the ones that provide the greatest access to high-quality healthcare, green spaces, recreation centers, and healthy food.”
Tampa, just behind Orlando, was ranked as Florida’s second healthiest city. It finished 27th nationally. The city placed 18th in fitness, 28th in food, 58th for green space, and 70th for health care for a total score of 55.26.
According to the study, San Francisco, California, was listed as America’s healthiest city. The city particularly achieved the top-spot in food and green space, while placing 28th in fitness and 76th in health care for a high-score 67.60.
Followed by San Francisco, the rest of the top 5 included Honolulu, Hawaii; Seattle, Washington; San Diego, California; and Washington, D.C. Honolulu, in particular, achieved high-marks in green space and food to finish with a score of 64.28.
Other U.S. cities, despite not being in the top 5, achieved top-marks in certain categories, including Scottsdale, Arizona for fitness and Overland Park, Kansas for healthcare. Both cities finished 9th and 38th overall, respectively.
Tipping the scale in the wrong direction, Brownsville, Texas was declared America’s unhealthiest city with a paltry score of 24.36 to finish in 182nd place. The city yielded dead last marks in food and fitness, while inching ahead two spots in health care and three spots for green space.
Bringing up the rear, Gulfport, Mississippi; Laredo, Texas; Columbus, Georgia; and Shreveport, Louisiana rounded out the bottom five. Columbus also achieved the lowest health care rank while Winston-Salem, North Carolina finished last in green space.
Hialeah, Florida, possibly needing some pointers from Orlando, was listed as Florida’s unhealthiest city in 152nd place with a score of 38.50. In particular, the city finished 169th in fitness and 162nd in green space.
