Health Profile of Bedford County, Tennessee
Bedford 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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C
Bedford County Below averageHealthier than 71% of counties in Tennessee
Source: Map AI Methodology
General Health Overview
| Metric | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Life Expectancy (years) | 76.3 | 74.8 | 78.3 |
| Uninsured Population (%) | 14.6% | 10.0% | 8.4% |
| Self-Rated Poor Health | 18.7% | 19.5% | 16.3% |
Life expectancy in Bedford County is 76.3 years, about 1.5 years longer than the Tennessee average of 74.8 years. The uninsured rate is 14.6%, higher than the Tennessee average of 10.0%. Self-rated poor health is reported by 18.7% of residents, lower than the Tennessee average of 19.5%.
Population by Age
Older residents
17,015 residents in Bedford County are age 50 or older.
- 85+ 773 263 men · 510 women
- 75–84 2,225 995 men · 1,230 women
- 65–74 4,315 2,110 men · 2,205 women
- 50–64 9,702 4,738 men · 4,963 women
Younger residents
12,761 residents in Bedford County are age 17 or younger.
- 12–17 4,008 2,039 boys · 1,969 girls
- 7–12 3,734 1,911 boys · 1,823 girls
- 3–7 2,857 1,541 boys · 1,316 girls
- 0–3 2,162 1,189 boys · 973 girls
About 2,644 residents in Bedford County (5.1% of the population) are older than the area's life expectancy of 76.3 years.
The highlighted slice of the age axis is the share of residents older than the life-expectancy mark.
Disease Prevalence
| Disease / Condition | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Diabetes | 12.8% | 13.6% | 11.3% |
| Cancer | 6.4% | 7.0% | 6.9% |
| Heart Diseases | 7.4% | 8.1% | 7.1% |
| Adult Obesity | 37.4% | 37.9% | 34.3% |
On average, diseases in Bedford County are about the same as in Tennessee.
Health Behaviors
| Behavior | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Smokers | 24.4% | 25.1% | 19.0% |
| Binge Drinking | 13.8% | 13.8% | 16.5% |
| Sedentary Lifestyle | 28.3% | 28.4% | 25.1% |
On average, health behaviors in Bedford County are about the same as in Tennessee.
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 95,203 cigarettes a day, 2.9 million a month, or 34.7 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 1.0 million minutes a day and 382.2 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Bedford County is 76.3 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.03 lifetimes a day, or 9.53 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 | Bedford County | Tennessee Avg | US Average |
|---|---|---|---|
| Air Pollution (μg/m³) | 6.33 | 6.39 | 6.09 |
With an annual average of 6.3 µg/m³ of fine particulate matter (PM2.5), air quality in Bedford County is good — generally safe air quality for the vast majority of residents.
Bedford County, TN Health Compared With Nearby Counties
Bedford County, TN is the 3rd largest of the 6 counties compared here, 52,237 residents against a local median of 36,049. Bedford County, TN's uninsured, at 14.6%, runs 45% above the 10.0% typical of the counties around it. That is the weaker end of the local range on this measure.
The counties themselves sit within 3.4% of each other on uninsured, a tighter band than the gap between any of them and Bedford County, TN, which makes it a genuine outlier here rather than one end of a wide local spread. Bedford County, TN has the 6th lowest uninsured of the 6 areas compared here.
| Area | Population | Life expectancy | Uninsured | Obesity |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bedford County, TN | 52,237 | 76.3 yrs #3/6 | 14.6% #6/6 | 37.4% #3/6 |
| Moore County, TN | 6,674 | 78.2 yrs | 7.0% | 35.3% |
| Marshall County, TN | 36,049 | 75.3 yrs | 10.4% | 37.2% |
| Rutherford County, TN | 357,384 | 77.4 yrs | 10.0% | 38.6% |
| Coffee County, TN | 59,710 | 74.4 yrs | 10.4% | 38.1% |
| Lincoln County, TN | 35,946 | 75.4 yrs | 9.7% | 37.6% |
Conclusion
Considering all these factors, Bedford County, Tennessee has an overall health index grade of C, making it somewhat better than Tennessee, and about on par with the country as a whole.
Frequently Asked Questions
Common questions about health in Bedford County, Tennessee.
How healthy is Bedford County, Tennessee?
Bedford County, Tennessee 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 Bedford County, Tennessee one of the healthiest counties in Tennessee?
Bedford County ranks 28th healthiest out of 95 counties in Tennessee by the Map AI Health Index, which measures life expectancy, disease rates, healthcare access, and the physical environment.
How long do people live in Bedford County, Tennessee?
People in Bedford County, Tennessee can expect to live 76.3 years on average, 1.5 years longer than the Tennessee average of 74.8.
How many people lack health insurance in Bedford County, Tennessee?
14.6% of residents in Bedford County, Tennessee have no health insurance, about 1 in 7 people, 4.5 points above the Tennessee rate of 10.0%.
How common is obesity in Bedford County, Tennessee?
37.4% of adults in Bedford County, Tennessee are classified as obese, about 1 in 3, about the same as the Tennessee rate of 37.9%.
How many cigarettes do smokers in Bedford County, Tennessee go through, and how much life does that cost?
Assuming each smoker smokes 10 cigarettes a day, that's about 95,203 cigarettes a day, 2.9 million a month, or 34.7 million a year! At 11 minutes* of life lost per cigarette, that's about 1.0 million minutes a day and 382.2 million a year lost to smoking overall - and since life expectancy in Bedford County is 76.3 years, that's roughly equivalent to 0.03 lifetimes a day, or 9.53 lifetimes a year.
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