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San Francisco was crowned America’s healthiest city in a study published by WalletHub, which evaluated more than 180 major U.S. cities, according to the San Francisco Chronicle. The city leads the nation in low obesity rates and access to healthy living options, despite its current financial and social woes.
This comes at a time when more than 70% of U.S. adults are overweight and healthcare costs are escalating. The personal finance website’s release of the 2024 list of America’s healthiest cities highlights the financial implications of health for individuals. The researchers looked at a wide range of metrics, from the cost of medical visits to the consumption of fruits and vegetables and the percentage of physically active adults.
“San Francisco has the second-lowest share of people who eat less than one serving of fruits or vegetables per day, and 100% of the population lives reasonably close to a location where they can do some sort of physical activity,” said Cassandra Happe, a WalletHub analyst, reporting on the findings. San Fransisco has consistently topped the list since 2017. This year it was number one both in availability of healthy food and green space.
In the overall health rankings, Honolulu, Seatle, San Diego, and Washington D.C. closely trailed San Fransico. However, according to Study Finds, Seattle had consistently higher ratings in the four main categories of overall fitness, food, green space and healthcare.
But just because a city didn’t rank high overall in the survey, it still can have health merits. For example, Laredo, Texas placed almost at the bottom of the overall list, but researchers said that the cost of a medical visit in this Southern city is three times lower than in Juneau, Alaska. St. Louis, Kansas City, and Brownsville, Texas also stood out for low healthcare costs.
In terms of mental health support, the survey found that Spokane, Washington, and Colorado Springs tied as the top places to live with 12 times the number of counselors per capita than Laredo, Texas. Portland, Maine topped the list for the lowest percentage of adults not eating enough fruits and veggies daily. San Francisco, Oakland and Fremont, California also scored well. On the flip side, cities like Memphis, Chattanooga and Baton Rouge landed at the bottom of the ladder for their lack of healthy eaters.
Other highlights included cities with the healthiest restaurants per capita. Portland, Oregon came in first. Lubbock, Texas had the lowest average monthly cost of a fitness club memberships — nine times lower than New York City. Residents in South Burlington, Vermont had twice the percentage of physically active adults compared with Hialeah, Florida. Other physically active cities included Irvine, California, Seattle, Huntington Beach, California and Scottsdale, Arizona.
“Staying healthy is a personal responsibility, and everyone should strive to eat nutritious food, exercise regularly and look after their mental health,’ said Happe. “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.”
You can view the WalletHub findings here.
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