It's pretty subjective of course. But the UN has just brought out a report based on the official Sustainable Development Goals (also known as Global Goals).

Iceland came top of the list, followed by Singapore. The UK came 5th, which surprised me, given the parlous state of our Health Service. But the US, in spite of its wealth and advanced medical technologies, came in at only 28. This is said to be due to the high death rates from violence, HIV, alcohol consumption, childhood obesity and suicide.

Hazel, it surprises me that the United States came in at 28 and not 58!! Real medical care here is practically none existent!! The emergency rooms at hospitals are functional but just about all other medical care is based upon bilking insurance companies or the federal government. Our food supply is rife with chemicals, antibiotics, hormones, etc. etc.! As for our " wealth " we survive by printing mountains of paper money each day that loses more value each day!! We like to deceive ourselves with our " greatness " and we take alcohol, drugs, over-eat, and go to beauty salons to perpetuate our delusions!! Our only two growth industries are the sale and use of drugs, both legal and illegal; and the making of guns and bombs and other weapons to kill people the world over!!

I've got crappy ADSL, but the rest of it is ok. Happy here lost in the donga ...

"Healthy" is like that.

The USA of course. Which was why my parents emigrated here. They came from concentration camps in Europe.
The USA is big enough. You can live where you want. How you want.

I grew up on home made cheese, fresh eggs, a farm. I am pretty healthy in my retirement age.
I still camp out in the woods in my senior years, ride bicycles and motorcycles, etc......

Studies can be sooo full of crap sometimes. But the grant money is good income for some.
I guess being healthy is a personal mind set for some. No matter what country you live in.
So is a positive outlook on living life.

I kind of subscribe to both.

What he said!

Life is what you make of it and if you sit around, your health will degrade. If you get up and do stuff, you will still have health. Sometimes genetics has a play and those who end up having problems are bound to always have them. Either case, if you're a middle of the road type of person, you can go either way depending on how much you do or don't sit on your duff.

What I CAN tell you is sitting around theorizing on this stuff endlessly ain't gonna make you live longer.

I don't like statistics. What does it mean healthy? Long life, happy life, you could have a short life with no medical issues. Dunno.

One statistic claimed that if you took Detroit, Chicago, and Washington DC off the lists then the numbers would be in line with other modern countries.


Not sure what they do in NY but everyone in Texas has medical treatment. Each county has to pay for indigent while Federal covers those who may be in legal limbo.

Probably not Iraq

Unless you get cancer or an incurable disease. Published data for the USA shows over 40,000 deaths a year due to lack of health care, and 62% of bankruptcies due to medical bills. Look at the EpiPen scandal. The device costs $300 in the USA and £24 ($34) in the UK.

Then there's the death rate from maniacs with guns, including ill-trained police: 45 times higher in the USA than in the UK.

Where do they come up with those statistics?

I do not remember if it is medicine or just hygiene which *was* responsible for the extended life-expectations that we had enjoyed in the western-countries. As none of both are responsible for the current decrease of life-expectations, it is particularly difficult to use medicine as argument in a discussion like this. The superlative in the topic obliges us to seek further evidence from all possible domains and to count in possible fluctuations in the near or far future...

The best answer that I can give, then is: Go everywhere, learn every language, stay for two years, talk a lot to everybody around, especially the natives, then use your judgment.

You can live well in US, you have your own responsibility on what you are eating, the quantities and your daily fitness activities.