County’s health report card shows mixed results

By Staff
Morgan residents not living as long as counterparts in Alabama
Leada Gore, Hartselle Enquirer
Morgan County residents don’t live as long, suffer from higher rates of diabetes and are more likely to get divorced than their counterparts across the state. Those were among the findings released last week from Auburn University in Montgomery’s Center for Demographic Research.
But before you think the news is all bleak, the study showed county residents fared better than most Alabamians when it comes to incidents of diseases such as Alzheimer’s, heart disease and stroke.
The study examined health statistics from 2004, when Morgan County’s population was 113,211. The first part of the study looks at the population as a whole, including age and racial makeup.
Morgan County showed a 1.9 percent population increase from 2000-2004, a number equal to the state’s growth during the same time. Twenty-seven percent of the county’s population is younger than 20; 13 percent is older than 65. Both numbers are lower than the state average. Some 14 percent of Morgan County’s residents were black or other races, a number less than the state average of 29 percent.
The health results showed a mixed bag. First, the good news:
Other news was not so encouraging: