Michigan Counties Named the Healthiest in the State

Summer offers plenty of opportunities to get healthy, especially with warm weather in Michigan making it easier to work out in the great outdoors. If you've ever wondered how healthy Michigan is compared to other areas of America, a new study gives some insight into our health rating and the healthiest Michigan counties in the state.

The crew at USNews.com have put together a study to determine the healthiest communities in the U.S. "Health is inextricably linked to where we live," they state in the study. "In fact, it's been said a person’s ZIP code can predict more about a person's health than their genetic code. The 2022 Healthiest Communities rankings highlight this important point by analyzing 89 factors that fuel and form the health of residents across nearly 3,000 U.S. counties and county equivalents."

As for methodology, the study states, "Counties are assessed on a 100-point scoring system tied to how they perform relative to one another across 10 health-related categories, ranging from education and the economy to community vitality, equity, infrastructure and public safety. They receive a ranking based on their performance as well."

These are the 25 counties out of the 500 ranked that scored the highest overall, making them the Healthiest Communities in the U.S. None of Michigan's counties fell inside that range. In fact, our healthiest county is No. 116 on the tally. Not so great, but it could be worse. The No. 1 healthiest county in America is Los Alamos County, New Mexico, followed by Falls Church city, Virginia, and Douglas County, Colorado.

Read on for the healthiest Michigan counties highlighted in this report, which are all inside the 500 healthiest in America. I recognize most of these, but my county is not on the list. We have work to do! Read the full list of the healthiest counties in America here.

Michigan has a slew of beautiful parks and outdoor areas that are a major tourist attraction for Michiganders and those beyond the Mitten. It's easy to find state parks, campgrounds and outdoor recreation areas throughout the state, which makes it simple to find summertime things to do in the state.

Of course, many of Michigan's most charming state parks are located on or near one of the Great Lakes. It doesn't get much more beautiful than exploring a state park near the water. I'm actually more of an ocean kind of girl, but since we're so far from the ocean here in Michigan, you really can't go wrong enjoying the gorgeous lakes.

If you're looking for some summertime fun, I've put together a list of 30 beautiful Michigan state parks to get on your to-visit list. I've only been to a few of these parks, but the ones I've visited are breathtaking. Last summer, I traveled to Sleepy Hollow State Park in Laingsburg and did some hiking, which offered an endless array of beautiful views of nature. Another one on the list that I've visited is Ludington State Park Beach, which offers some great views of lighthouses.

If you're looking for some interesting Michigan state park trivia, Michigan's 101 state parks and recreation areas cover 306,000 acres (124,000 ha) with 14,100 campsites in 142 campgrounds and over 900 miles (1,400 km) of trails. The state parks get 28 million annual visitors. Michigan's state parks system was launched in 1919. There are three Michigan state parks that pre-date the creation of the park system in 1919, and those include Mackinac Island State Park (1895), Michilimackinac State Park (1909) and Interlochen State Park (1917). According to Michigan.gov, Michigan has 103 state parks and 138 state forest campgrounds. "In Michigan, you’re never more than a half hour away from a state park, state forest campground or state trail system," they state.

https://www.michigan.org/property/sleepy-hollow-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/fayette-historic-state-park-and-harbor

https://www.michigan.org/property/hartwick-pines-state-park-visitors-center-logging-museum

https://www.michigan.org/property/harrisville-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/bald-mountain-recreation-area

https://www.fs.usda.gov/hiawatha

https://www.michigan.org/property/yankee-springs-recreation-area

https://www.michigan.org/property/wilderness-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/warren-dunes-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/wells-state-park-jw-wells

https://www.michigan.org/property/van-buren-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/tahquamenon-falls-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/holland-state-park

https://www.nps.gov/slbe/

https://www.michigan.org/property/north-higgins-lake-state-park

https://www.tripadvisor.com/Attraction_Review-g42665-d3491639-Reviews-Shiawassee_National_Wildlife_Refuge-Saginaw_Michigan.html

https://www.michigan.org/property/petoskey-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/seven-lakes-state-park

https://www.nps.gov/piro/index.htm

https://www.nps.gov/rira/index.htm

https://www.michigan.org/property/muskegon-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/muskallonge-lake-state-park

https://www.nps.gov/isro/

https://www.michigan.org/property/maybury-state-park

https://www.nps.gov/kewe/

https://www.michigan.org/property/ludington-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/lake-gogebic-state-park

https://www.michigan.org/property/william-g-milliken-state-park-and-harbor

https://www.michigan.org/property/burt-lake-state-park

This list is via USNews.com.

https://www.gtcountymi.gov/

https://www.leelanau.gov/

https://www.livgov.com/

https://www.oakgov.com/Pages/default.aspx

https://www.charlevoixcounty.org/

https://www.emmetcounty.org/

https://www.washtenaw.org/

https://www.miottawa.org/

https://www.co.midland.mi.us/

hhttps://www.familysearch.org/en/wiki/Dickinson_County,_Michigan_Genealogy

https://www.clinton-county.org/

https://www.co.marquette.mi.us/

https://www.benzieco.net/