25 US communities where people are healthy, stay physically active, and feel great about life

Yulia Mayorova/Shutterstock

Where you live matters. San Francisco pictured.

• Health and wellness are key components of thriving communities.
• U.S. News & World Report released its 2018 rankings of the healthiest communities in the US.
• The list below focuses on one of the factors used in the ranking: population health, including how many people participate in physical activity, life expectancy, and mental health.
• Olmsted County, Minnesota has the healthiest population in the country, according to the rankings. Falls Church City, Virginia, came out No. 1 overall.

The roughly 144,000 residents of Olmsted County, Minnesota are among the fittest, happiest, and longest-living people in the United States.

That's according to the 2018 U.S. News & World Report rankings of the healthiest communities in the country.

A number of factors were considered in the rankings, including population health, equity (think income inequality and disparity in health across different ethnic populations), education, economy, housing, food and nutrition, environment, public safety, community vitality, and infrastructure. Falls Church City, Virginia, came out No. 1 overall.

The list below focuses exclusively on one of the factors used in the U.S. News list to determine the healthiest cities: population health, which breaks down into sub-factors such as how many people have health insurance, how many people participate in regular physical activity, rates of cancer, life expectancy, and how many poor mental health days people have every month. Colorado communities appear multiple times on the list.

Communities were also identified as urban or rural, and as "high-performing" or "up-and-coming" based on their economic performance.

Read on to learn more about the communities with the healthiest populations in the US.