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1 / 50#48. Russell County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.3 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average
Counties with the shortest life expectancy in Kansas
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 Kansas, 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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2 / 50#48. Atchison County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.3 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average
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3 / 50#48. Butler County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.3 years
--- 0.7 years lower than the state average
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4 / 50#46. Rooks County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.2 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average
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5 / 50#46. Harvey County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 76.2 years
--- 0.8 years lower than the state average
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6 / 50#45. Elk County
- Life expectancy: 76.1 years
--- 0.9 years lower than the state average
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7 / 50#44. Chautauqua County
- Life expectancy: 76.0 years
--- 1.0 years lower than the state average
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8 / 50#40. Finney County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
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9 / 50#40. Rice County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
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10 / 50#40. Scott County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
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11 / 50#40. Dickinson County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.9 years
--- 1.1 years lower than the state average
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12 / 50#39. Allen County
- Life expectancy: 75.8 years
--- 1.2 years lower than the state average
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13 / 50#36. Sheridan County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.7 years
--- 1.3 years lower than the state average
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14 / 50#36. Shawnee County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.7 years
--- 1.3 years lower than the state average
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15 / 50#36. Kiowa County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.7 years
--- 1.3 years lower than the state average
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16 / 50#35. Meade County
- Life expectancy: 75.6 years
--- 1.4 years lower than the state average
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17 / 50#33. Sedgwick County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.5 years
--- 1.5 years lower than the state average
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18 / 50#33. Franklin County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.5 years
--- 1.5 years lower than the state average
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19 / 50#31. Barton County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.4 years
--- 1.6 years lower than the state average
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20 / 50#31. Ottawa County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.4 years
--- 1.6 years lower than the state average
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21 / 50#30. Barber County
- Life expectancy: 75.2 years
--- 1.8 years lower than the state average
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22 / 50#28. Osage County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.1 years
--- 1.9 years lower than the state average
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23 / 50#28. Sumner County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 75.1 years
--- 1.9 years lower than the state average
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24 / 50#25. Bourbon County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.8 years
--- 2.2 years lower than the state average
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25 / 50#25. Neosho County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.8 years
--- 2.2 years lower than the state average
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26 / 50#25. Cloud County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.8 years
--- 2.2 years lower than the state average
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27 / 50#24. Harper County
- Life expectancy: 74.7 years
--- 2.3 years lower than the state average
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28 / 50#23. Linn County
- Life expectancy: 74.5 years
--- 2.5 years lower than the state average
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29 / 50#22. Rush County
- Life expectancy: 74.4 years
--- 2.6 years lower than the state average
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30 / 50#19. Cowley County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.3 years
--- 2.7 years lower than the state average
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31 / 50#19. Republic County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.3 years
--- 2.7 years lower than the state average
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32 / 50#19. Greenwood County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.3 years
--- 2.7 years lower than the state average
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33 / 50#18. Stafford County
- Life expectancy: 74.1 years
--- 2.9 years lower than the state average
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34 / 50#15. Wilson County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.0 years
--- 3.0 years lower than the state average
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35 / 50#15. Labette County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.0 years
--- 3.0 years lower than the state average
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36 / 50#15. Wyandotte County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 74.0 years
--- 3.0 years lower than the state average
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37 / 50#14. Hamilton County
- Life expectancy: 73.7 years
--- 3.3 years lower than the state average
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38 / 50#13. Wichita County
- Life expectancy: 73.6 years
--- 3.4 years lower than the state average
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39 / 50#12. Ness County
- Life expectancy: 73.5 years
--- 3.5 years lower than the state average
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40 / 50#11. Brown County
- Life expectancy: 73.4 years
--- 3.6 years lower than the state average
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41 / 50#9. Clark County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.3 years
--- 3.7 years lower than the state average
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42 / 50#9. Montgomery County (tie)
- Life expectancy: 73.3 years
--- 3.7 years lower than the state average
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43 / 50#8. Geary County
- Life expectancy: 73.2 years
--- 3.8 years lower than the state average
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44 / 50#7. Crawford County
- Life expectancy: 73.1 years
--- 3.9 years lower than the state average
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45 / 50#6. Comanche County
- Life expectancy: 72.4 years
--- 4.6 years lower than the state average
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46 / 50#5. Cherokee County
- Life expectancy: 72.3 years
--- 4.7 years lower than the state average
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47 / 50#4. Morton County
- Life expectancy: 71.3 years
--- 5.7 years lower than the state average
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48 / 50#3. Hodgeman County
- Life expectancy: 70.8 years
--- 6.2 years lower than the state average
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49 / 50#2. Edwards County
- Life expectancy: 64.6 years
--- 12.4 years lower than the state average
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50 / 50#1. Kingman County
- Life expectancy: 63.6 years
--- 13.4 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.
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