National health rankings list: Indiana ranks in bottom 10

[gabaghoul]

Indy ranks low among 'healthiest' cities for women

Sad but true

[Broadrippleguy]

idk why all these rankings matter.
What matters is YOUR personal eating habits and life choices.
What others do shouldnt bother me one bit.

[indy_317]

I think the physical health of folks in Indiana mostly has to do with generational attitudes and the like. For decades Indiana had a large number of union jobs bankrolling many families in some aspect or another. The people I know who were lucky enough to retire recently from whatever UAW jobs are left have the same thing in common: Overweight. Union mentality is that someone else should be taking care of you, making sure all your needs are taken care of. I see this thought process in many older folks I know who worked in the factories and made very good money. About half also have a problem with personal spending.

Now that the money is gone, because the jobs are gone, I'm seeing even worse things happening, especially in smaller town/city Indiana. Young folks, barely out of high school, no real education, not married, end up becoming single parents. They are going on welfare, keep drinking, keep smoking, etc.. This attitude that someone be there to take care of all your problems, be it a job, food on the table, healthcare, etc. only means many folks won't have what it takes to keep their healthcare in order. Can't tell people how to eat, they will demand they get to do whatever they want. However, try to make them pay for their healthcare out of pocket, and they will demand national healthcare in some form or another.

Face it, we are a nation of children for the most part. Many people get taken care of in some form or another, and I think Indiana is worse given our history of strong union labor (just another entity that takes care of the masses, some of whom would be forever hopeless if it weren't for union benefits). So long as Uncle Sam and the charity of others will be there, people won't care too much about their personal health. Education would help, but for many, it is a lost cause.

[rrah]

Why do any of the rankings you frequently post matter?

Why do health rankings matter? Obese people miss more work for starters. They tend to have other diseases which increases insurance costs. Obesity also affects work performance. Just google work performance and obesity for the numerous studies that indicate the above. If I was considering opening a business in a healthy state versus an state with lower rankings I would choose the healthier state.

[grmasterb]

Originally Posted by indy_317

I think the physical health of folks in Indiana mostly has to do with generational attitudes and the like. For decades Indiana had a large number of union jobs bankrolling many families in some aspect or another. The people I know who were lucky enough to retire recently from whatever UAW jobs are left have the same thing in common: Overweight. Union mentality is that someone else should be taking care of you, making sure all your needs are taken care of. I see this thought process in many older folks I know who worked in the factories and made very good money. About half also have a problem with personal spending.

Now that the money is gone, because the jobs are gone, I'm seeing even worse things happening, especially in smaller town/city Indiana. Young folks, barely out of high school, no real education, not married, end up becoming single parents. They are going on welfare, keep drinking, keep smoking, etc.. This attitude that someone be there to take care of all your problems, be it a job, food on the table, healthcare, etc. only means many folks won't have what it takes to keep their healthcare in order. Can't tell people how to eat, they will demand they get to do whatever they want. However, try to make them pay for their healthcare out of pocket, and they will demand national healthcare in some form or another.

Face it, we are a nation of children for the most part. Many people get taken care of in some form or another, and I think Indiana is worse given our history of strong union labor (just another entity that takes care of the masses, some of whom would be forever hopeless if it weren't for union benefits). So long as Uncle Sam and the charity of others will be there, people won't care too much about their personal health. Education would help, but for many, it is a lost cause.

If you look at any list ranking obesity or general health, a lot of southern states are usually among the worst, and those states have never been union strongholds.

[indy_317]

Originally Posted by grmasterb

If you look at any list ranking obesity or general health, a lot of southern states are usually among the worst, and those states have never been union strongholds.

I would say their poor health seems to be tied more on the reliance on someone else to carry the water, in this case government welfare programs. As I stated, I think Indiana, Mich., and OH likely had similar attitudes, but likely based upon how many folks were reliant upon the union for their lifestyle. I've heard the southern states are big consumers of government welfare. I've read that social security disability seems to be a career in parts of Alabama.

[key4lp]

I've lived in Indiana for a long time. Ideally, I would love to move somewhere else but that isn't possible right
now. That being said, yes Indiana ranks very low in mental health, elder and child care. Funding for
education has been cut and there are many cities ( really throughout the US too) that do not have
proper funding for law enforcement. Indiana currently has a surplus however that surplus will not be
used for adding additional funding for schools (and let's be honest we are talking about public schools)
including higher education. The residents of the state will be receiving money from the surplus on their
Indiana tax returns.
Regarding obesity, let's face it, Americans are getting obese. Don't know all the stats.
I do find that the people here are very nice. There are somethings that are good about Indiana such as
the low cost of living, which kind of traps people here too.
There are also some amazing places which should be said. They are the Indiana Dunes, the caves near
French Lick. The French Lick hotel and the amazing Baden Springs hotel that has been completely
restored. Also Indiana has the Feline Rescue Center which rescues tigers, lions, leopards, cougars
that were abused. There are only 2 of these type of rescue centers for large cats and this one
ranks number 1.