The secret to a long life. . .

. . . is not just how you live but where you live. Walk fast and live in a big city. Or so says Clive Thompson in New York Magazine.

Oh, Wisconsinites still live longer than New York city residents by about six-tenths of a year (79.2 vs 78.6). But they’re moving up faster: we only gained about 2 months from 2002-4 to 2003-5 to their 5 months.

Read the article: it’s fascinating. But here’s a brief synopsis of why New Yorkers (and Chicagoans and Bostonians) are living longer.

• They walk a lot, and they walk fast. Research says the fast walking is key. (They also do a lot of climbing: the city is “built like one big jungle gym for pedestrians,” someone said.) The built environment makes it hard to drive and forces people to be active.

• They weigh less—10 pounds less. That’s partly because they walk a lot. “The more you drive, the more you weigh,” said professor Lawrence Frank.

• Because it’s crowded and people are out walking a lot, they bump into each other and have extensive social networks. Which means, I guess, they walk a lot with each other.

• The city is aesthetically pleasing and charming. Which makes people want to get out and. . . walk a lot.

• New York cleaned up its environmental and criminal acts, making it possible to . . . walk a lot.

• Proximity matters. People visit parks more because they are closer, and they. . . walk around them a lot.

• The city is rich and prospering. Gentrification leads to better housing, better food, better hospitals, better health care. The rich always live longer. And ambitious, driven cities attract ambitious, driven people, who. . .


walk a lot.