Son Canadians healthier than Americans?

En el noroeste del Pacífico, por lo menos, ellos son. That’s according to the February 2009 Cascadia Scorecard:

British Columbia lidera el noroeste del Pacífico in several critical long-term trends, incluyendo human de salud, energy effiiciency, y smart growth, reported the Cascadia Scorecard, a regional progress report released today by Sightline Institute.

…British Columbia residents live an average of 81.6 años, two years longer than residents of the Northwest states and topping all other North American states y provincias. De hecho, if BC were an independent nation, tendría el second longest lifespan in the world, después de Japón, y estar atado con Islandia.

The healthiest jurisdiction in British Columbia is the suburban city of Richmond, AC, where lifespans exceed 84 años.

¿Qué hace la Columbia Británica por lo sano? La Informe Cascadia goes on to say:

British Columbians’ success in leading long, healthy lives results not from one single cause, pero a partir de muchos. None of the province’s inhabitants goes without seguro de salud — unlike the 1 en 7 residents of the Northwest states who do so each year.

BC also has lower rates of violent deaths: fewer homicides and also fewer fatal car crashes, the latter largely due to compact communities that allow residents to drive less.

Even economics may play a role. On average, residents of the province aren’t as wealthy as their American counterparts, but the income and wealth gaps between the rich and the poor are narrower. Around the world, an unequal economic structure tends to be associated with poor health.

Other factors, incluyendo lower rates of severe obesity compared with the Northwest states, may also play a role.