The criteria used in the ranking looks at a wide range of factors including lifestyle, medical insurance, crime and population health. Utah excels in having the fewest smokers as well as the lowest incidence of diabetes. Other factors that contribute to Utah’s high ranking include having one of the lowest obesity rates in the country, lower excessive drinking rates, residents being more physically active and having the fewest deaths due to cancer.

Top 10 in America’s Health Rankings® 2015
1- Hawaii	6- Connecticut
2- Vermont	7- Utah
3- Massachusetts	8- Colorado
4- Minnesota	9- Washington
5- New Hampshire	10- Nebraska

The seventh place ranking is tied for the lowest the state has achieved in the 25-year history of the list. Utah was consistently the healthiest state through most of the 1990s. The state’s fall in the rankings since then are due to several reasons: Utah has one of the higher incidence of deaths due to prescription drug abuse; it is one of lowest in immunizations and other preventative care like checking cholesterol and access to primary care physicians; and Utah also has the second highest number of pertussis cases, commonly known as whooping cough.

The rankings are about action the report said. “It’s about going beyond where your state is in the rankings to where it could be. It’s about using the data to investigate why your state fell or rose in the rankings, and then looking for actions to take. What can you do to make your community and state healthier?”

To view the full rankings and criteria numbers for Utah and links for other states, visit http://www.americashealthrankings.org/UT.

For tips on how to live a healthier life, visit the Intermountain LiVe Well website.