Counties With the Shortest Life Expectancy in Minnesota

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Counties with the shortest life expectancy in Minnesota

Life expectancy can be affected by a variety of factors. About 25% of your lifespan is determined by genetics, according to the National Library of Medicine. Health and wellness habits—like following a balanced, nutrient-rich diet; not smoking; drinking minimal alcohol; maintaining a healthy weight; and staying physically active—can add more than a decade to your life, research from the National Institutes of Health shows. While these factors are significant, another important element that you might not have considered is your environment and community.

While life expectancy generally increases annually in the United States—jumping from about 70.8 years old to 77.5 between 1970 and 2022, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention—this particular metric can vary from state to state or even county to county. In some parts of the country, the average lifespan is getting shorter based on a variety of risk factors on top of health, including socioeconomic factors like poverty, unemployment, income, and education.

According to a 2020 study from researchers at Penn State, West Virginia, and Michigan State Universities, communities with a higher population density, more fast food restaurants, and a high number of extraction industry-based jobs tend to have shorter life expectancies.

To find out how life expectancy varies within Minnesota, Stacker used 2024 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute to identify the counties with the shortest life expectancy. Life expectancy measures the average number of years from birth a person can expect to live and is calculated based on the number of deaths in a given time period and the average number of people at risk of dying during that period. Counties with unreliable or insufficient data were excluded from the analysis. Mortality data came from the National Vital Statistics System.

Read on to see if your county is on the list.

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#44. Nobles County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.4 years
--- 0.3 years lower than the state average

#41. Redwood County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.3 years
--- 0.4 years lower than the state average

#41. Chisago County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.3 years
--- 0.4 years lower than the state average

#41. Douglas County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.3 years
--- 0.4 years lower than the state average

#40. Watonwan County

- Life expectancy: 79.2 years
--- 0.5 years lower than the state average

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#39. Lincoln County

- Life expectancy: 79.1 years
--- 0.6 years lower than the state average

#37. Mower County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.0 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average

#37. Crow Wing County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 79.0 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average

#35. Clay County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.9 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average

#35. Lake of the Woods County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.9 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average

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#34. Isanti County

- Life expectancy: 78.8 years
--- 0.9 years lower than the state average

#30. Faribault County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.7 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average

#30. Pope County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.7 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average

#30. Grant County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.7 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average

#30. Goodhue County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.7 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average

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#27. Morrison County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.6 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average

#27. Swift County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.6 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average

#27. Koochiching County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 78.6 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average

#26. Ramsey County

- Life expectancy: 78.4 years
--- 1.3 years lower than the state average

#25. Aitkin County

- Life expectancy: 78.2 years
--- 1.5 years lower than the state average

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#24. Renville County

- Life expectancy: 78.1 years
--- 1.6 years lower than the state average

#23. Big Stone County

- Life expectancy: 78.0 years
--- 1.7 years lower than the state average

#21. Norman County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.9 years
--- 1.8 years lower than the state average

#21. Cottonwood County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.9 years
--- 1.8 years lower than the state average

#19. Benton County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.7 years
--- 2.0 years lower than the state average

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#19. St. Louis County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.7 years
--- 2.0 years lower than the state average

#17. Polk County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.4 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average

#17. Pine County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.4 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average

#15. Carlton County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.3 years
--- 2.4 years lower than the state average

#15. Rock County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.3 years
--- 2.4 years lower than the state average

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#14. Kanabec County

- Life expectancy: 77.2 years
--- 2.5 years lower than the state average

#11. Wadena County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.1 years
--- 2.6 years lower than the state average

#11. Roseau County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.1 years
--- 2.6 years lower than the state average

#11. Itasca County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 77.1 years
--- 2.6 years lower than the state average

#10. Chippewa County

- Life expectancy: 77.0 years
--- 2.7 years lower than the state average

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#8. Wilkin County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 76.8 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average

#8. Becker County (tie)

- Life expectancy: 76.8 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average

#7. Kittson County

- Life expectancy: 76.4 years
--- 3.3 years lower than the state average

#6. Traverse County

- Life expectancy: 76.3 years
--- 3.4 years lower than the state average

#5. Cass County

- Life expectancy: 75.8 years
--- 3.9 years lower than the state average

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#4. Clearwater County

- Life expectancy: 75.2 years
--- 4.5 years lower than the state average

#3. Beltrami County

- Life expectancy: 75.1 years
--- 4.6 years lower than the state average

#2. Mille Lacs County

- Life expectancy: 74.6 years
--- 5.1 years lower than the state average

#1. Mahnomen County

- Life expectancy: 68.7 years
--- 11.0 years lower than the state average

This story features data reporting by Karim Noorani, writing by Kiersten Hickman, and is part of a series utilizing data automation across 49 states.