Rankings of New York counties by the health of their populations has St. Lawrence County at number 57 of the 62 counties in the state.

Franklin County, to our east, was ranked 50, and to our west in Jefferson County, the ranking was 44. The lower the rank, the better.

The health survey of each of the state’s 62 counties, and counties nationwide, is conducted every year by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation and the University of Wisconsin Population Health Institute.

The annual survey shows how counties compare on factors such as education, housing, violent crime, jobs, diet and exercise.

St. Lawrence County’s sample population of 447 adults taking part in the survey reported 23 percent “excessive drinking” behavior, as defined by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation nationwide survey as “consuming more than 4 (women) or 5 (men) alcoholic beverages on a single occasion in the past 30 days, or heavy drinking, defined as drinking more than one (women) or 2 (men) drinks per day on average.” St. Lawrence County’s rate was matched in New York by Clinton, Putnam and Columbia counties, and exceeded only by Schuyler and Ulster counties, at 25 percent.

The number of children under age 18 living in poverty in St. Lawrence County was estimated at 6,726 or 30 percent of that population. That rate was only exceeded in New York State by The Bronx (42 percent) and Kings County (Brooklyn, 33 percent). The rate in Franklin County, just to our east, is 29 percent.

High rates of college attendance, fewer preventable hospital stays and better access to parks and gyms are things found in healthier counties. More smokers, more teen births and more alcohol related car crash deaths are likely in less healthy counties.

More complete data can be found at http://www.countyhealthrankings.org/.