FRANKLIN, W.Va. — Pendleton County ranked healthiest in West Virginia, according to the 2015 County Health Rankings, released Wednesday, by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.
The five healthiest counties in West Virginia, starting with most healthy, are Pendleton, Jefferson, Monongalia, Pleasants, and Upshur. The five counties in the poorest health, starting with least healthy, are McDowell, Wyoming, Mingo, Logan, and Mercer.
The rankings are a comparison of health in nearly every county in the United States. The counties in each state are compared among 30 factors that influence health including education, housing, violent crime, jobs, exercise, and diet.
Amber Hedrick, Pendleton County Health Department Administrator, said she believes they are the healthiest county because they consistently implement early childhood health programs in schools.
“We really focus on early education with fitness and look at obesity factors to try to educate our kids,” said Hedrick.
This year’s rankings showed that the healthiest counties in each state have higher college attendance, fewer hospital stays, and better access to gyms and parks. The least healthy counties have more smokers, more teen births, and more alcohol related car crash deaths.
Hedrick said they have a full-time tobacco educator in the school system that teaches children about tobacco use.
“Parents seem to listen more when their children come home and ask them why they are smoking or chewing and ask them to quit because they want them to live,” said Hedrick.
Hedrick said it is important to provide a variety of programs to keep the community up, thinking, and acting on their health. She said they offer a walking program at the parks, specifically one at the West Virginia University Extension Service. The program offers walking challenges to motivate and provide more physical activity throughout Pendleton County.
“I think we just need to keep up with repetition. It’s what you need, really, to tell someone one, two, or three times sometimes isn’t enough,” said Hedrick.
Hedrick said maintaining a healthy lifestyle is achievable individually, and in families, by taking more steps throughout the day and drinking lots of water.
A full list of rankings are available at www.countyhealthrankings.org.