Hawaii for the third year in a row took the top position as the healthiest state in the nation. The Aloha State, which benefits from a low rate of smoking, obesity, children living in poverty, and rates of preventable hospitalizations and cancer deaths, has never placed below sixth place since the rankings began being compiled in 1990.  Taking the next top five places, in order after Hawaii, were Vermont, Massachusetts, Connecticut and Utah.  Conversely, Mississippi took last place in the ranking for the third straight year. Mississippi, which has never risen from the bottom three states since the report began, has very high rates of obesity, physical inactivity, diabetes, children in poverty and infectious disease.  Read MoreA 'buck' a day for keeping the doctor away  "Mississippi also ranks 50th for all health determinants combined, so its overall ranking is unlikely to change significantly in the near future," the report noted.  Just above Mississippi, in ascending order, were Arkansas, Louisiana, Kentucky and Oklahoma.  Randall said she hopes public health officials, government leaders and advocates in all the states look at the rankings and see what areas need improvement, and which states have been able to move up their ranks.  She noted that New York in the past 25 years has moved from 40th place to 14th place as the rates of infant mortality, premature death and violent crime have all fallen in the Empire State during that time.  While the report does not identify the causes for changes in the relative rankings, Randall said things like the steep decline in smoking use are an example of how officials and others can change behavior through different strategies.  "We can do the same thing with physical activity and diabetes if we put our mind to it," she said.
Life expectancy is up, smoking is down, and obesity rates are on the rise again according to the new edition of America's Health Rankings.