Health Profile of Polk County, Florida
Polk County Health Score
The Map AI Health Index is a score that reflects local life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and physical environment to help you quickly compare the overall health and well-being of different areas.
-
C
Polk County Below average
Source: Map AI Methodology
General Health Overview
| Metric | Polk County | Florida Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 77.2 | 77.2 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 12.4% | 11.5% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 20.6% | 19.5% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in Polk County is about the same as in Florida, at 77.2 years. The uninsured rate is 12.4%, higher than the Florida average of 11.5%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 20.6% of residents, higher than the Florida average of 19.5%.
Population by Age
Older residents
296,191 residents in Polk County are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 16,981 6,710 men · 10,271 women
- 75–84 50,030 23,335 men · 26,695 women
- 65–74 84,066 38,702 men · 45,364 women
- 50–64 145,114 70,241 men · 74,873 women
Younger residents
169,863 residents in Polk County are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 51,677 26,768 boys · 24,909 girls
- 7–12 50,509 25,764 boys · 24,745 girls
- 3–7 39,062 19,817 boys · 19,245 girls
- 0–3 28,615 14,648 boys · 13,968 girls
About 53,556 residents in Polk County (6.8% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 77.2 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | Polk County | Florida Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 13.1% | 12.5% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 7.2% | 7.3% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 8.1% | 8.0% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 36.3% | 33.8% | 34.3% |
On average, diseases in Polk County are about the same as in Florida.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | Polk County | Florida Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 21.0% | 21.3% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 14.2% | 14.8% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 29.4% | 29.1% | 25.1% |
On average, health behaviors in Polk County are about the same as in Florida.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 1.3 million cigarettes a day, 38.9 million a month, or 473.5 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 14.3 million minutes a day and 5.2 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Polk County is 77.2 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.35 lifetimes a day, or 128 lifetimes a year.
* Source: Shaw M, Mitchell R, Dorling D. "Time for a smoke? One cigarette reduces your life by 11 minutes." BMJ. 2000;320:53.
Illustrative only. This is not an estimate of how many people actually die from smoking each day or year - it's a rough, order-of-magnitude comparison meant to help grasp the scale of smoking in this area. We take no responsibility for any decisions made based on this figure.
Air Quality
| Metric | Polk County | Florida Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 7.67 | 7.27 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 7.7 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in Polk County is good — generally safe air quality for the vast majority of residents.
Polk County, FL Health Compared With Nearby Counties
Polk County, FL is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 790,685 residents against a local median of 427,393. Nothing separates Polk County, FL sharply from the counties around it. Each measure below lands within 15% of the local median, close enough that the differences are within what survey sampling alone would produce.
The largest of those small differences is uninsured, 3% above the local median at 12.4% against 12.0%. Polk County, FL has the 4th lowest uninsured of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Life expectancy | Uninsured | Obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Polk County, FL | 790,685 | 77.2 yrs #6/6 | 12.4% #4/6 | 36.3% #4/6 |
| Hardee County, FL | 25,673 | 79.5 yrs | 20.1% | 38.4% |
| Osceola County, FL | 427,393 | 79.4 yrs | 10.6% | 35.6% |
| Hillsborough County, FL | 1,519,188 | 77.5 yrs | 11.1% | 30.5% |
| Orange County, FL | 1,470,874 | 78.3 yrs | 12.0% | 30.3% |
| Highlands County, FL | 105,700 | 77.4 yrs | 13.8% | 37.8% |
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, Polk County, Florida has an overall health index grade of C, making it somewhat better than Florida, and about on par with the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in Polk County, Florida.
What is the health grade for Polk County, Florida?
Polk County, Florida has a Map AI Health Index grade of C, based on life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment; a C grade means residents are close to the U.S. average.
Is Polk County, Florida one of the healthiest counties in Florida?
Polk County ranks 38th healthiest out of 67 counties in Florida by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
How long do people live in Polk County, Florida?
People in Polk County, Florida can expect to live 77.2 years on average, about the same as the Florida average of 77.2.
What is the uninsured rate in Polk County, Florida?
12.4% of residents in Polk County, Florida have no health insurance, about 1 in 8 people, 0.9 points above the Florida rate of 11.5%.
What is the obesity rate in Polk County, Florida?
36.3% of adults in Polk County, Florida are classified as obese, about 1 in 3, 2.5 points above the Florida rate of 33.8%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in Polk County, Florida go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 1.3 million cigarettes a day, 38.9 million a month, or 473.5 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 14.3 million minutes a day and 5.2 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Polk County is 77.2 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.35 lifetimes a day, or 128 lifetimes a year.
Analyze any area in the US
Get local demographics for any address, aggregated by drive time or radius, on the interactive map.
Explore the map →