Healthy Places

The Healthiest Places in America

Though there’s no one-size-fits-all approach to being healthy, one thing’s for certain: It starts at home. Whether you can jog to a trail right outside your front door or cook a nutritious meal with produce from the farmer’s market, you’ll find the keys to a healthy lifestyle right in your own neighborhood.

Communities are making it easy for residents to take charge of their health. They’re building miles and miles of multi-use trails, designing inclusive, accessible playgrounds for kids of all ages and abilities, and making the most of their natural surroundings and landscapes to encourage people to get outside.

Businesses across the country are also pioneering new and innovative ways to support people’s health. From products that help people see better to medicines that save lives, it’s amazing what can happen when people work together to tackle a pressing medical issue.

Many of the best college towns in the country have earned that accolade in part because of their outstanding medical schools, where the next generation of doctors, nurses and specialists prepare for the future. What’s more, universities and colleges are also leading groundbreaking research projects that have real impacts on people’s health and well-being.

Community hospitals provide top-notch care in state-of-the-art facilities, but they’re managing to do so with compassion and empathy. They’re attracting the best and brightest specialists to help serve their community’s ever-changing health needs. High-quality hospitals and healthcare facilities are so important that Livability factors them into their lists of best places to live, best places for retirees and best places for soon-to-be moms

And even cities in some surprising places are making a name for themselves with out-of-this-world opportunities for working up a sweat (without even feeling like you’re exercising!). For example, Xenia, OH, is attracting bicyclists from all over, while Grand Forks, ND, has become an adventure lover’s paradise in all four seasons

People want to live longer, healthier lives — and they’re looking for communities that can help them reach those goals, both directly and indirectly. Awesome city parks, nearby hiking trails, rugged climbing gyms, outstanding hospitals and even affordable farm-to-doorstep eating are all pieces of the complex health puzzle. They show that cities can — and do — play an active role in improving the health and well-being of their residents.

And with healthy, happy communities, everybody wins.

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