Health Profile of Santa Fe County, New Mexico
Santa Fe 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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A
Santa Fe County Above averageAmong the top 3 healthiest counties in New Mexico
Source: Map AI Methodology
General Health Overview
| Metric | Santa Fe County | New Mexico Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 80.5 | 78.6 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 8.9% | 9.6% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 13.1% | 17.9% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in Santa Fe County is 80.5 years, about 1.9 years longer than the New Mexico average of 78.6 years. The uninsured rate is 8.9%, lower than the New Mexico average of 9.6%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 13.1% of residents, lower than the New Mexico average of 17.9%.
Population by Age
Older residents
68,515 residents in Santa Fe County are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 3,462 1,219 men · 2,243 women
- 75–84 9,679 4,520 men · 5,159 women
- 65–74 21,876 10,267 men · 11,608 women
- 50–64 33,499 15,894 men · 17,605 women
Younger residents
26,337 residents in Santa Fe County are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 8,673 4,162 boys · 4,511 girls
- 7–12 7,876 3,886 boys · 3,990 girls
- 3–7 5,728 2,923 boys · 2,805 girls
- 0–3 4,060 2,059 boys · 2,001 girls
About 6,607 residents in Santa Fe County (4.3% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 80.5 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | Santa Fe County | New Mexico Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 9.6% | 13.5% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 6.3% | 6.4% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 5.7% | 7.4% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 21.3% | 31.4% | 34.3% |
The rate of obesity in Santa Fe County is about 32% lower than in New Mexico. The rate of diabetes in Santa Fe County is about 29% lower than in New Mexico. The rate of heart disease in Santa Fe County is about 23% lower than in New Mexico.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | Santa Fe County | New Mexico Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 12.6% | 18.0% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 12.5% | 13.1% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 19.0% | 24.9% | 25.1% |
The rate of smoking in Santa Fe County is about 30% lower than in New Mexico. The rate of sedentary lifestyle in Santa Fe County is about 24% lower than in New Mexico.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 163,566 cigarettes a day, 4.9 million a month, or 59.7 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 1.8 million minutes a day and 656.7 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Santa Fe County is 80.5 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.04 lifetimes a day, or 16 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 | Santa Fe County | New Mexico Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 4.52 | 4.71 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 4.5 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in Santa Fe County is very good — well within WHO health guidelines, with minimal health risk from air pollution.
Santa Fe County, NM Health Compared With Nearby Counties
Santa Fe County, NM is the 2nd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 155,407 residents against a local median of 34,542. The measure that sets Santa Fe County, NM apart most is obesity: 21.3%, 21% below the local median of 26.9%. That is the better end of the local range on this measure.
Uninsured tells the same story from another angle: 8.9% against a local median of 7.7%, 16% above it. The picture is mixed rather than uniform: obesity runs ahead of the neighbourhood while uninsured runs behind it, so Santa Fe County, NM is trading one against the other rather than simply out-performing what surrounds it. The counties themselves spread 10.5% on obesity, so Santa Fe County, NM sits at one end of an already wide local range rather than apart from it. Santa Fe County, NM has the lowest obesity of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Life expectancy | Uninsured | Obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Santa Fe County, NM | 155,407 | 80.5 yrs #4/6 | 8.9% #6/6 | 21.3% #1/6 |
| Los Alamos County, NM | 19,409 | 83.2 yrs | 2.5% | 21.7% |
| Bernalillo County, NM | 672,163 | 78.6 yrs | 8.7% | 26.9% |
| Torrance County, NM | 15,478 | 81.3 yrs | 7.8% | 32.1% |
| Sandoval County, NM | 153,584 | 79.3 yrs | 6.5% | 28.8% |
| Taos County, NM | 34,542 | 81.4 yrs | 7.7% | 25.5% |
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, Santa Fe County, New Mexico has an overall health index grade of A, making it notably better than New Mexico, and notably better than the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in Santa Fe County, New Mexico.
How healthy is Santa Fe County, New Mexico?
Santa Fe County, New Mexico has a Map AI Health Index grade of A, based on life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment; an A grade means residents are much healthier than the U.S. average.
Is Santa Fe County, New Mexico one of the healthiest counties in New Mexico?
Santa Fe County ranks 2nd healthiest out of 32 counties in New Mexico by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
How long do people live in Santa Fe County, New Mexico?
People in Santa Fe County, New Mexico can expect to live 80.5 years on average, 1.9 years longer than the New Mexico average of 78.6.
What percentage of Santa Fe County, New Mexico residents are uninsured?
8.9% of residents in Santa Fe County, New Mexico have no health insurance, about 1 in 11 people, 0.7 points below the New Mexico rate of 9.6%.
What percentage of Santa Fe County, New Mexico residents are obese?
21.3% of adults in Santa Fe County, New Mexico are classified as obese, about 1 in 5, 10.1 points below the New Mexico rate of 31.4%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in Santa Fe County, New Mexico go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 163,566 cigarettes a day, 4.9 million a month, or 59.7 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 1.8 million minutes a day and 656.7 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Santa Fe County is 80.5 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.04 lifetimes a day, or 16 lifetimes a year.
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