Boulder happiest, healthiest city in the U.S., according to study

If you’re looking to escape your worries and find happiness, you’re living in the right place.

According to the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, which interviewed more than 353,000 Americans last year, Boulder is home to the healthiest, happiest people in the nation.

In fact, most of the highest-scoring cities were in the West – such as Boulder, which topped the list. On the other end of the spectrum, most of the lowest-scoring cities were in the South, such as Huntington, W.Va., which ranked last out of the 162 large and mid-sized cities in the study, according to an article about the study in USA Today.

The study asked individuals to assess their jobs, finances, physical health, emotional state of mind and communities to provide a city-by-city portrait of the nation’s mood and a potential tool for policymakers, the article says.

Of the 10 cities that scored best on “life evaluation” – assessments of life now and expectations in five years – nine of them are home to institutions that supposedly provide some buffer from recession - a major university, a big military installation or a state capitol.

Boulder was the only Colorado city ranked among the top 10, although the three others on the list were among the top 60. Four cities from California, two in Utah and one in Hawaii all represented the West in the top 10. Only the Holland, Mich., and Washington, D.C., metro areas are located in the Eastern or Central time zones, according to USA Today.

The majority of the bottom 10 cities are in economically embattled regions: three are in the Alleghenies and three in the Rust Belt. Only Shreveport, La., and Modesto, Calif., are west of the Mississippi.

Besides its mountainous setting, with a greenbelt of public lands circling the city, Boulder’s jobless rate of 5.7 percent, compared with the national 9.7 percent, may help its residents remain happy and healthy, according to the article.

Here’s a look at how Colorado cities fared in the study: