2 Tennessee cities ranked among least healthy in US, report says

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) – A new report has ranked two Tennessee cities among the least healthy in the U.S. in 2024.

Forbes Advisor released a report on the least healthy and healthiest populations across the U.S.

Among its rankings are Nashville and Memphis, ranked among the 10 unhealthiest U.S. cities. Memphis was ranked No. 3 behind Milwaukee and Detroit — Nashville came in at No. 9.

“Memphis trails closely behind Milwaukee as having one of the unhealthiest populations among the cities we considered, with some of the highest rates of diabetes, high blood pressure, and obesity,” Forbes wrote.

Nashville had a score of 68.19 compared to Memphis’ 92.58 — in Music City, Forbes reports that 222.5 (heart disease and 52.1 (opioid overdoses) died per 100,000 residents. Also, adult Nashvillians had the following percentage report binge drinking, 17.4%, smoking 18.1%, and obesity 32.7%.

Forbes also released its methodology for its report:

To determine which cities have the healthiest and least healthy populations, Forbes Advisor compared the 50 most populated cities (46 of which had available data) across the following eight metrics:

Number of heart disease deaths per 100,000 residents: 23% of score.

Number of opioid overdose deaths per 100,000 residents: 23% of score.

Percentage of adults with diabetes: 15% of score.

Percentage of adults with high blood pressure: 15% of score.

Percentage of adults who report binge drinking: 7% of score.

Percentage of adults who report having obesity: 7% of score. This metric reflects the percentage of adults who report a BMI of 30 or higher.

Percentage of adults who report smoking: 7% of score.

Percentage of adults who report physical inactivity: 3% of score. This metric reflects the percentage of adults who report being physically inactive in the past 30 days.

“According to the Centers For Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), chronic health conditions such as heart disease, cancer, and diabetes prevent six in 10 American adults from living life to the fullest,” Forbes wrote.

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