Health Profile of Delaware County, Pennsylvania
Delaware 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
Delaware County Around averageHealthier than 88% of counties in Pennsylvania
Source: Map AI Methodology
General Health Overview
| Metric | Delaware County | Pennsylvania Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 77.6 | 78.4 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 4.6% | 5.6% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 13.8% | 15.7% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in Delaware County is 77.6 years, about 0.8 years shorter than the Pennsylvania average of 78.4 years. The uninsured rate is 4.6%, lower than the Pennsylvania average of 5.6%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 13.8% of residents, lower than the Pennsylvania average of 15.7%.
Population by Age
Older residents
205,485 residents in Delaware County are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 13,105 4,202 men · 8,903 women
- 75–84 28,270 11,431 men · 16,839 women
- 65–74 51,466 23,335 men · 28,131 women
- 50–64 112,644 54,198 men · 58,446 women
Younger residents
122,459 residents in Delaware County are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 38,893 20,266 boys · 18,627 girls
- 7–12 36,456 18,467 boys · 17,989 girls
- 3–7 27,145 13,710 boys · 13,436 girls
- 0–3 19,966 10,319 boys · 9,647 girls
About 32,497 residents in Delaware County (5.6% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 77.6 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | Delaware County | Pennsylvania Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 10.6% | 11.0% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 6.5% | 7.2% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 6.0% | 7.4% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 30.0% | 34.5% | 34.3% |
The rate of heart disease in Delaware County is about 19% lower than in Pennsylvania.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | Delaware County | Pennsylvania Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 16.6% | 20.1% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 18.0% | 18.3% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 22.9% | 25.3% | 25.1% |
The rate of smoking in Delaware County is about 17% lower than in Pennsylvania.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 750,505 cigarettes a day, 22.5 million a month, or 273.9 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 8.3 million minutes a day and 3.0 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Delaware County is 77.6 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.20 lifetimes a day, or 74 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 | Delaware County | Pennsylvania Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 7.74 | 6.88 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 7.7 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in Delaware County is good — generally safe air quality for the vast majority of residents.
Delaware County, PA Health Compared With Nearby Counties
Delaware County, PA is typical in size for this group, 578,234 residents against a local median of 543,223, so the measures below are close to a like for like comparison. There is no headline here. Every measure below sits within 15% of the median across the nearest counties, which makes Delaware County, PA an unremarkable member of its own neighbourhood rather than an outlier in it.
The largest of those small differences is uninsured, 5% above the local median at 4.6% against 4.4%. Delaware County, PA has the 4th lowest uninsured of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Life expectancy | Uninsured | Obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Delaware County, PA | 578,234 | 77.6 yrs #3/6 | 4.6% #4/6 | 30.0% #2/6 |
| Philadelphia County, PA | 1,579,069 | 75.4 yrs | 7.1% | 30.5% |
| Montgomery County, PA | 867,535 | 80.2 yrs | 3.9% | 28.1% |
| Gloucester County, NJ | 306,962 | 77.6 yrs | 4.0% | 32.0% |
| Salem County, NJ | 65,196 | 77.0 yrs | 4.7% | 36.5% |
| Chester County, PA | 543,223 | 80.8 yrs | 4.4% | 30.6% |
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, Delaware County, Pennsylvania has an overall health index grade of B, making it somewhat better than Pennsylvania, and somewhat better than the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in Delaware County, Pennsylvania.
What is the health grade for Delaware County, Pennsylvania?
Delaware County, Pennsylvania 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 Delaware County, Pennsylvania one of the healthiest counties in Pennsylvania?
Delaware County ranks 9th healthiest out of 67 counties in Pennsylvania by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
How long do people live in Delaware County, Pennsylvania?
People in Delaware County, Pennsylvania can expect to live 77.6 years on average, 0.8 years shorter than the Pennsylvania average of 78.4.
What is the uninsured rate in Delaware County, Pennsylvania?
4.6% of residents in Delaware County, Pennsylvania have no health insurance, about 1 in 22 people, 1.0 points below the Pennsylvania rate of 5.6%.
How common is obesity in Delaware County, Pennsylvania?
30.0% of adults in Delaware County, Pennsylvania are classified as obese, about 1 in 3, 4.5 points below the Pennsylvania rate of 34.5%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in Delaware County, Pennsylvania go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 750,505 cigarettes a day, 22.5 million a month, or 273.9 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 8.3 million minutes a day and 3.0 billion a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Delaware County is 77.6 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.20 lifetimes a day, or 74 lifetimes a year.
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