With 34 million members and the world's largest circulation magazine, AARP http://www.aarp.org/ has ranked Naples/Marco Island as the 10th-best place to live and retire.AARP examined health and lifestyle habits of residents in cities across the United States.
The nation's largest nonpartisan organization for people 50 and older has come up with a list of the 10"healthiest hometowns" for robust living and retirement.
Naples/Marco Island joins the ranks of standouts such as San Francisco, Boulder, Colo., and Minneapolis/St. Paul., Minn. At the top of the list is Ann Arbor, Mich., followed by Honolulu, Hawaii, and Madison, Wis.
The Sept./Oct. edition of AARP's magazine is highlighting the healthiest hometowns, and where people live during the second half of their lives can make all the difference for longevity and vitality.
Researchers looked at the physical characteristics of metropolitan areas along with nearly 30 health-related criteria, such as life expectancy, physicians per capita, the precentage of the population that smokes, access to health plans and affordable ones, healthy eating and exercise habits.
The AARP article said Naples still deserves its real estate nickname of "Florida's last paradise" despite the building boom.
The area has hung on to its small-town feel: its beaches and art scene (more than 134 galleries in the vicinity) are often voted tops in the nation," the article said. "And for link lovers, it's heaven: Naples-Marco Island has the second most golf holes per capita in the country. In our survey, residents got high scores for regular exercise, healthy eating and not smoking, so it's no surprise that the area has one of the lowest cancer mortality rates going."
AARP also found Naples/Marco Island ranks second among a larger group of cities for longest life expectancy of 80.97 years. Life expectancy for the United States for the same period was 77.4 years.
Source: Naples Daily News
