How Your Zip Code Impacts Your Health Risk
QHHL 
May 16 2019
0 
0 QHHL
Where you live controls several factors that are essential to your health. So, if you want to evaluate your health risk, you need to understand the role of your home.
Your home is your sanctuary. It’s your safe place away from the world. But did you know that it also could increase your health risk? Your geographic location determines environmental hazards, your access to community, and temperature variations. It also determines your access to health care, personal income, and education level. And all these factors are key determiners of health. So, if you want to make an accurate health assessment, here’s what you need to know about where you live.
A recent study has highlighted the importance of your birthplace to longevity. The overall life expectancy in the US is around 78.8 years. However, this number can vary widely from state to state and even neighbourhood to neighbourhood. Children in Mississippi for example have a life expectancy of under 75 years. But children born in Hawaii, New York or California can expect to live into their nineties.
And these differences can be even more marked when the distances are shorter. People who live in the Barry Farms neighborhood in Washington DC have a life expectancy of 63.2 years. But in Friendship Heights and Friendship Village, just 10 miles away, the life expectancy is 96.1 years. This is a shocking difference. And it’s obviously one that you can’t change either. No matter where your life takes you, you can’t change your birthplace. This health risk applies forever. And this unchanging fact negatively impacts all aspects of society.
There are several factors that influence these statistics. The opioid epidemic has impacted these statistics markedly. Every year, around 500 children and adolescents die because of prescription medications and opioids in the US. Increases in suicide rates also affect the data. There are also some long-standing factors such as race or class. These directly impact where people live and the associated health risk factors.
On the surface of it, it seems obvious that your home impacts your health. It’s connected to several factors that increase or decrease your health risk. These factors include:
Exposure to sunlight is essential for your mental health. It also helps to boost your bone strength and lowers your risk of heart disease and certain cancers. Cold weather can also increase your health risk by making you more prone to infections. It also increases your risk of stroke.
Where you live often determines your exposure to toxins in the atmosphere or environment. It also affects your exposure to excessive noise, which can increase your stress levels and your risk of heart disease.
How much money you make determines your access to healthy food and quality medical care. And your income is often determined or at least influenced by your background and location. This determines job opportunities, quality of education options, access to education, and your attitude towards work and income.
Where you live determines the quality of education you have access to. This is a health risk factor because the risk of heart disease decreases as education levels increase. In fact, education levels may be the best predictor of a long life. This connection may be due to several factors. This includes better health education, access to good medical care, better health facilities, and more money for preventative care.
Having positive social connections may be the most essential element in a long and healthy life. Unfortunately, this is often determined by where you live and the lifestyle of the people around you. So, if the people around you are unhealthy in any way, chances are that you will be too.
The final factor is the access to medical care and education. There’s a lot of information about health online. But if you don’t know what to believe, it will negatively impact your long-term health. Having easy access to quality doctors and medical practitioners is also a big part of this health risk factor. For example, if you live rurally then it may be difficult to access medical care or attend regular health screening appointments. This will eliminate your chances of catching health problems early, when they’re easy to treat or eliminate.
You obviously can’t change where you were born. And chances are that you have little control over where you live as well. So, you could allow this information about the importance of your zip code to depress you. After all, there’s nothing you can do to decrease this health risk factor, is there?
Actually yes, there is. You can use this information to do a detailed analysis of your health risk sub-factors. This means that you should assess how your zip code impacts all the other factors in this article. Which apply to you and which don’t? And which ones can you change or protect yourself against? This is what you need to focus on, taking a proactive approach to lower your health risk. And one of the most essential tools for this is personal health monitoring.
If you’re concerned about a health risk, try using HomeLab to keep track of your condition and any preventative measures you take. And if you see signs of a significant problem, you should check with your doctor as soon as possible.
Tags: Health risk.