Israel: The Healthiest Country in the Middle East

According to Bloomberg rankings, using data compiled from the United Nations, the World Bank and World Health Organization, Israel was placed in the top 10 as one of the world’s healthiest country’s, ranking sixth place.

Ranking the healthiest countries

The overall results of health scores of 145 countries were determined by compiling data of countries with a population above 1 million, each given a health score and health-risk score; the overall score was calculated by deducting the country’s risk score from its health score. Life expectancy, cause of death (including age groups) and survival to the age of 65 totaled the health score; while risk score factors included those that smoke, obesity, physical activity; immunizations, as well as high blood pressure, glucose and cholesterol among other factors. Countries were excluded if only less than eight risk factors were identified.

The Top 10 Healthiest Countries

Out of 145 countries, the healthiest being Singapore with an overall health score of 89.45%, Israel scored 85.97%. The top 10 is as follows:

1. Singapore

2. Italy

3. Australia

4. Switzerland

5. Japan

6. Israel

7. Spain

8. Netherlands

9. Sweden

10. Germany

North and South American countries, and the UK failed to make it in the top 20. Israel was the only Middle Eastern country to feature in the top 10. While many African nations fell to the bottom of the list, such as Lesotho, Democratic Republic of Congo and more – Swaziland was ranked the least unhealthy country, with an overall score of only 0.26%.

However, the word “healthy” is more subjective, as the World Economic Forum (WEF) points out that the “quality of life” rather than “life expectancy” could include lower-income countries, which reportedly have higher levels of satisfaction. In addition; Chad scored poorly on Bloomberg’s list and yet was voted this year as the country having the healthiest diet in the world – published in The Lancet Global Health journal (Israel scored ninth place). Nonetheless, WEF indicated that this data could be used as a guideline for lower-scoring countries in terms of how they can improve or do things differently compared to the higher-scoring countries.

Herzliya Medical Center is a private hospital in Israel, its innovative approach in medicine across extensive fields, modern technology and top doctors make it the first choice for treatment. Contact us today for a comprehensive health check, HMC’s facilities continue to utilize the latest, highly accurate diagnostics, ensuring any possible condition is detected and effectively treated.