Ohio drops to 46th in well-being ranking

Ohio dropped from 44th to 46th in the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, an annual ranking of states based on the well-being of their residents (Source: “Report: The most miserable states in the USA,” USA Today, Feb. 27, 2014).

The analysis is based on more than 178,000 interviews nationwide, which examined Americans' perceptions on topics such as physical and emotional health, healthy behaviors, work environment, social and community factors, financial security, and access to necessities such as food, shelter and healthcare to create a composite well-being rank for each state.

Ohio’s lowest ranking, 48th, came in the “life evaluation” category; where respondents were asked describe themselves as thriving, struggling, or suffering. Other areas where Ohio did poorly were physical health (46), healthy behaviors (45), which includes measurements of smoking, nutrition and physical activity, and emotional health (44).

Compared to other categories, Ohio did best in “basic access,” ranking 28^th nationally.  This category includes such measurements as  access to health care, clean water and affordable fruits and vegetables.  Ohio also did slightly better in the “work environment” category, which includes job satisfaction, ranking 40^th in the nation.

North Dakota rated highest, followed by South Dakota, Nebraska, Minnesota and Montana. The only four states ranked lower than Ohio are Alabama, Mississippi, Kentucky and West Virginia.