Health Profile of Lafayette County, Mississippi
Lafayette 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.
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B
Lafayette County Around averageAmong the top 3 healthiest counties in Mississippi
Source: Map AI Methodology
General Health Overview
| Metric | Lafayette County | Mississippi Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 77.9 | 74.7 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 9.3% | 11.0% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 15.1% | 23.5% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in Lafayette County is 77.9 years, about 3.2 years longer than the Mississippi average of 74.7 years. The uninsured rate is 9.3%, lower than the Mississippi average of 11.0%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 15.1% of residents, lower than the Mississippi average of 23.5%.
Population by Age
Older residents
15,653 residents in Lafayette County are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 828 334 men · 494 women
- 75–84 1,985 730 men · 1,255 women
- 65–74 4,292 1,994 men · 2,297 women
- 50–64 8,548 3,985 men · 4,563 women
Younger residents
9,951 residents in Lafayette County are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 2,996 1,503 boys · 1,492 girls
- 7–12 2,860 1,467 boys · 1,393 girls
- 3–7 2,304 1,150 boys · 1,154 girls
- 0–3 1,791 864 boys · 927 girls
About 2,145 residents in Lafayette County (3.7% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 77.9 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | Lafayette County | Mississippi Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 9.1% | 14.7% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 5.0% | 6.2% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 5.3% | 7.9% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 35.9% | 41.8% | 34.3% |
The rate of diabetes in Lafayette County is about 38% lower than in Mississippi. The rate of heart disease in Lafayette County is about 33% lower than in Mississippi. The rate of cancer in Lafayette County is about 20% lower than in Mississippi.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | Lafayette County | Mississippi Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 15.0% | 22.1% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 15.3% | 12.9% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 22.6% | 32.5% | 25.1% |
The rate of smoking in Lafayette County is about 32% lower than in Mississippi. The rate of sedentary lifestyle in Lafayette County is about 31% lower than in Mississippi. The rate of binge drinking in Lafayette County is about 19% higher than in Mississippi.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 71,733 cigarettes a day, 2.2 million a month, or 26.2 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 789,061 minutes a day and 288.0 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Lafayette County is 77.9 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.02 lifetimes a day, or 7.04 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 | Lafayette County | Mississippi Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 7.66 | 7.91 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 7.7 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in Lafayette County is good — generally safe air quality for the vast majority of residents.
Lafayette County, MS Health Compared With Nearby Counties
Lafayette County, MS is the largest of the 6 counties compared here, 58,327 residents against a local median of 31,525. Lafayette County, MS's uninsured, at 9.3%, runs 22% below the 12.0% typical of the counties around it. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
Obesity tells the same story from another angle: 35.9% against a local median of 42.8%, 16% below it. Every measure here with a clear better direction points the same way, so Lafayette County, MS is not trading one advantage for another, it reads stronger than its neighbours across the board. The counties themselves sit within 1.1% of each other on uninsured, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Lafayette County, MS, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Lafayette County, MS has the lowest uninsured of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Life expectancy | Uninsured | Obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lafayette County, MS | 58,327 | 77.9 yrs #1/6 | 9.3% #1/6 | 35.9% #1/6 |
| Yalobusha County, MS | 12,419 | 73.3 yrs | 11.5% | 40.3% |
| Marshall County, MS | 33,979 | 74.0 yrs | 11.8% | 43.2% |
| Calhoun County, MS | 12,852 | 76.0 yrs | 12.0% | 45.7% |
| Panola County, MS | 32,808 | 73.3 yrs | 12.7% | 42.8% |
| Pontotoc County, MS | 31,525 | 77.8 yrs | 12.2% | 39.3% |
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, Lafayette County, Mississippi has an overall health index grade of B, making it far better than Mississippi, and somewhat better than the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in Lafayette County, Mississippi.
Is Lafayette County, Mississippi a healthy place to live?
Lafayette County, Mississippi has a Map AI Health Index grade of B, based on life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment; a B grade means residents are somewhat healthier than the U.S. average.
Is Lafayette County, Mississippi one of the healthiest counties in Mississippi?
Lafayette County ranks 2nd healthiest out of 82 counties in Mississippi by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
What is the average lifespan in Lafayette County, Mississippi?
People in Lafayette County, Mississippi can expect to live 77.9 years on average, 3.2 years longer than the Mississippi average of 74.7.
What percentage of Lafayette County, Mississippi residents are uninsured?
9.3% of residents in Lafayette County, Mississippi have no health insurance, about 1 in 11 people, 1.7 points below the Mississippi rate of 11.0%.
What percentage of Lafayette County, Mississippi residents are obese?
35.9% of adults in Lafayette County, Mississippi are classified as obese, about 1 in 3, 5.9 points below the Mississippi rate of 41.8%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in Lafayette County, Mississippi go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 71,733 cigarettes a day, 2.2 million a month, or 26.2 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 789,061 minutes a day and 288.0 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Lafayette County is 77.9 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.02 lifetimes a day, or 7.04 lifetimes a year.
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