{"id":3533,"date":"2023-10-19T11:13:15","date_gmt":"2023-10-19T15:13:15","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/dailycupofwellness\/?p=3533"},"modified":"2023-10-19T11:13:15","modified_gmt":"2023-10-19T15:13:15","slug":"new-report-ranks-the-best-and-worst-u-s-states-for-mental-health","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.beliefnet.com\/columnists\/dailycupofwellness\/2023\/10\/new-report-ranks-the-best-and-worst-u-s-states-for-mental-health.html","title":{"rendered":"New Report Ranks the Best and Worst U.S. States For Mental Health"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"mental
Dragana Gordic\/Shutterstock.comm<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Where you live has a lot to do with how you feel. A recent study from Soliant Health, a healthcare research and staffing company based in Atlanta, Georgia, revealed this year\u2019s best and worst U.S. states to live in for mental health.<\/p>\n

The report weighed numerous factors that impact people\u2019s mental health status across all 50 states and drew from national registries and agency data. These included the frequency of \u201cbad mental health days,\u201d access to\u00a0mental health providers, the suicide rate between the ages of 15 and 24, the unemployment rate, the violent crime rate, the disconnected youth rate, access to exercise opportunities and air pollution, the published report stated.<\/p>\n

According to the report, the top ten best states for mental health<\/a> are Nebraska, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Minnesota, Rhode Island, New Jersey, Vermont, Colorado, North Dakota, and Utah. Nebraska landed in the top spot, having the lowest\u00a0share of teenagers\u00a0and young adults who are unemployed or not in school. The Cornhusker State hit a high score of 85.2 out of 100 in weighted mental health points.<\/p>\n

Runners-up Connecticut and Massachusetts scored a close 85 and 81.8 points, respectively. West Virginia ranked as the worst state in the U.S. for mental health, followed by Alabama and Arkansas. West Virginia had the highest average number of mentally unhealthy days in the last 30 days. According to the report, Alabama had the worst mental health provider-to-population ratio and came second-to-last for the most mentally unhealthy days.<\/p>\n

Arkansas scored low in various categories, including exercise opportunities, disconnected youth rate, air pollution and mentally unhealthy days. The report gave honorable mentions to findings in states like California, which ranked highest for the most access to\u00a0exercise opportunities\u00a0but lowest for air pollution. In a statement sent to Fox News Digital, Dr. Gary Small, psychiatry chair of Hackensack University Medical Center\u00a0in New Jersey, reacted to his state\u2019s clinching a top spot on the list.<\/p>\n

He said, \u201cI am delighted, but not surprised, that New Jersey ranked No. 6 in Soliant Health\u2019s 2023 Best States for Mental Health Report. Over the past several years, our state has steadily expanded its focus on mental health.\u201d Small also pointed out that New Jersey has recently \u201callocated aid to mental health care, including the 988 hotline and mental health services for students.\u201d Small noted that the Garden State has one of the most \u201ceducated and high-income populations in the country,\u201d which correlates to better access to care and\u00a0healthier lifestyle habits.<\/p>\n

Small continued, “For people in that demographic, there is greater access to exercise opportunities, which is more important to mental health than most people realize. Regular physical activity leads to\u00a0lower rates of depression, anxiety and age-related cognitive decline.\u201d<\/p>\n

As New Jersey was one of the “hardest-hit states” during the coronavirus pandemic, Small said this led to the state’s enhancing its focus on mental health. “Sadly, California ranked No. 17 on this report, which reflects the many challenges our states are facing due to the recent explosion of mental health problems and inadequate resources throughout our nation,” he noted.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Where you live has a lot to do with how you feel. A recent study from Soliant Health, a healthcare research and staffing company based in Atlanta, Georgia, revealed this year\u2019s best and worst U.S. states to live in for mental health. The report weighed numerous factors that impact people\u2019s mental health status across all…<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":657,"featured_media":3542,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"fbia_status":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,69],"tags":[7],"class_list":["post-3533","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-mental-health","category-study","tag-mental-health"],"yoast_head":"\nNew Report Ranks the Best and Worst U.S. States For Mental Health<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"A new report from Soliant Health, a healthcare staffing and research company, ranked the best and worst U.S. states for mental health.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" 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