Middlesex County Likes Drinking and Fast Food, but Healthier Than Rest, Study Says

By Andrew Sylvia

Middlesex County, home to Somerville and Cambridge, likes its fast food and drinking, but on the whole it appears healthier than the rest of Massachusetts and the rest of the nation.

That conclusion comes from a recent study by the University of Wisconsin and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation.

In the study, Middlesex County was listed second healthiest county, overall, in Massachusetts, behind to Dukes County.

While the advantage in most categories was only marginally different compared to the rest of Massachusetts, Middlesex County had almost a thousand fewer premature deaths and half as many sexually transmitted infections as the state on average.

Still, when it comes to those sexually transmitted infections, Middlesex County had almost twice the rate of the national average, a trend that was comparable with the rest of the state, along with things like trips to fast food restaurants, violent crime and excessive drinking.

The study also looked at measures including adult obesity and insurance coverage, premature death, teen birth rates and the number of physicians and dentists per county resident.

Overall, Hampden County was ranked least healthy in the state.

Detailed information on Middlesex County and other counties in the report is available on the County Health Rankings and Roadmaps website.