American Fitness Index 2015: The 10 Healthiest (And Unhealthiest) Cities In The US
The West Coast has got it going on when it comes to staying healthy: at least that’s the consensus from the 2015 American Fitness Index, which has ranked the healthiest and unhealthiest cities in America using data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC).
Washington, D.C., Minneapolis-St. Paul, San Diego, San Francisco, and Sacramento were the top five healthiest cities this year, according to the report. The unhealthiest cities, meanwhile, included Indianapolis, which ranked worst, and Memphis. Last year, Washington, D.C. and Minneapolis-St. Paul were the front runners for the American Fitness Index, followed by Portland, Denver, and San Francisco. The unhealthiest cities of 2014, meanwhile, included Nashville, Louisville, and Memphis.
“Emerging public health information suggests that to reach the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention’s goal to improve health and fitness, prevent disease and disability, and enhance quality of life for all Americans through physical activity, we must create a culture that integrates physical activity into our daily lives,” the authors of the report, which included a panel of 26 health and physical activity experts, write.
The report showed some promising things: such as the fact that the rate of coronary heart disease has dropped 9.5 percent between 2014 and 2015. But it also found that the percentage of people who have worked out in the past 30 days decreased by 11 percent, meaning it’s likely that physical activity isn’t on people’s radars as much as it should be.
“The AFI is two things: a measure of how healthy a metro area is today, and a call-to-action for urban and suburban leaders to design infrastructure that promote active lifestyles and lead to positive health outcomes,” Walter Thompson, chair of the AFI advisory board, said in a press release. “Our goal is to provide communities and residents with resources that help them assess, respond and achieve a better, healthier life.”
Below are the top 15 healthiest cities.
1. Washington, D.C.
2. Minneapolis
3. San Diego
4. San Francisco
5. Sacramento, Calif.
6. Denver
7. Portland
8. Seattle
9. Boston
10. San Jose, Calif.