21. Massachusetts
> Metro area:Boston-Cambridge-Newton
> Life expectancy: 80.5 years
> Obesity rate: 23.2%
> Poverty rate: 10.6%

Residents of the Boston-Cambridge-Newton metro area are among the least likely Americans to smoke or be obese. Just 14.0% of metro adults smoke, and just 23.2% are considered obese. By comparison, the national smoking and obesity rates are 20.0% and 27.0%, respectively. Perhaps as a result, the 80.5 year life expectancy at birth in Boston-Cambridge-Newton is the highest in Massachusetts and one of the highest in the country. High income and educational attainment may also factor into the area’s good health outcomes. The metro area is home to the highest median household income in the state and the highest concentration of adults with bachelor degrees in the U.S., at $75,667 a year and 45.2%, respectively.

22. Michigan
> Metro area:Ann Arbor
> Life expectancy: 80.5 years
> Obesity rate: 23.6%
> Poverty rate: 14.5%

As a whole, Michigan is a relatively unhealthy state. Michigan residents are expected to live for 77.8 years on average, less than the 78.5 year national average. In Ann Arbor, however, life expectancy is 80.5 years — the highest in the state and two years longer than the average American. Good health outcomes are likely a result of the relatively healthy behavior among Ann Arbor adults. In the metro area, 83.0% of residents exercise regularly, 23.6% are obese, and just 11.6% smoke. By comparison, 77.2% of Michigan adults as a whole exercise regularly, 31.6% are obese, and 19.7% smoke.

23. Minnesota
> Metro area:St. Cloud
> Life expectancy: 81.4 years
> Obesity rate: 27.5%
> Poverty rate: 14.6%

Life expectancy in Minnesota is 80.4 years, the third highest of any state and nearly two years longer than the average American. With a life expectancy of 81.4 years, St. Cloud residents are expected to live even longer. Unlike most cities with long-life expectancies, St. Cloud is also home to the largest share of obese adults in Michigan. The obesity rate in the metro area is 27.5%, higher than the statewide obesity rate of 25.9% and even higher than the national obesity rate of 27.0%.

24. Mississippi
> Metro area:Jackson
> Life expectancy: 75.6 years
> Obesity rate: 34.5%
> Poverty rate: 18.5%

Mississippi residents are expected to live for just 74.5 years on average, the shortest life expectancy of any state. While Jackson’s 75.6 year life expectancy is the highest in the state, it is still almost three years less than the 78.5 year national average. Jackson residents have slightly healthier behavior than Mississippi residents overall, but still fare far worse than the average American. Just 68.7% of Jackson residents exercise regularly and 34.5% are obese, compared to the corresponding national figures of 77.0% and 27.0%, respectively.

25. Missouri
> Metro area:Columbia
> Life expectancy: 79.2 years
> Obesity rate: 24.2%
> Poverty rate: 20.7%

Of the eight metro areas in Missouri, residents of just one are expected to live longer than the average American. The 79.2 year life expectancy in Columbia is the highest in Missouri and higher than the 78.5 year national average. Not surprisingly, the metro area is also home to some of the highest exercise and lowest obesity rates in the state. Of all Columbia adults, 79.0% exercise regularly and 24.2% are obese, both better than 73.7% of adults with a regular exercise habit in Missouri as a whole and the 30.9% who are obese.