This Colorado County Has The Shortest Life Expectancy

While the quality of life has been on the rise in America, it's taken a downturn in recent years. The COVID-19 pandemic, rampant drug use, and unintentional injuries are huge contributing factors, according to experts. Depending on where you live, other factors can malign your well-being, including health care, housing, and access to clean water and air.

Stacker previously revealed Colorado counties with the longest life expectancies. Now it's time to look at the places with smaller lifespans.

According to the study, Otero County has the Centennial State's shortest life expectancy at 72.1 years. That's 7.9 years less than the statewide average!

This is how researchers determined their rankings:

"Using 2022 County Health Rankings & Roadmaps from the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute, Stacker identified counties with the shortest life expectancy in Colorado. Life expectancy measures the average number of years from birth a person can expect to live, and is calculated based on the number of deaths in a given time period and the average number of people at risk of dying during that period. Counties with unreliable or insufficient data were excluded from the analysis. Mortality data came from the National Vital Statistics System."

Here are the Top 10 Colorado counties with the shortest life expectancies:

1. Otero County
2. Bent County
3. Pueblo County
4. Alamosa County
5. Conejos County
6. Huerfano County
7. Dolores County
8. Rio Grande County / Las Animas County (tie)
9. Prowers County
10. Baca County

Check out the full report on Stacker's website.