Why Israel was named 10th healthiest country in world February 26, 2019 A baby seen playing in a vegetable garden. (Flash90/Chen Leopold)Flash90/Chen Leopold)Why Israel was named 10th healthiest country in world Tweet WhatsApp Email https://worldisraelnews.com/israel-named-10th-healthiest-country-in-world/ Email Print Israel named one of 10 healthiest countries.By Joseph Wolkin, World Israel NewsMaybe it’s the falafel. Or the Israeli salads.The healthy lifestyle of the Jewish state keeps it in the top 10 of Bloomberg’s Healthiest Country Index. The results, released Sunday, put Israel in the No. 10 spot among healthiest nations of the world. Admittedly, it’s one spot behind Israel’s ranking of 9th last year. Norway jumped ahead of Israel and Luxembourg.In order to determine the world’s healthiest nations, Bloomberg broke down different health variables in each country, including life expectancy. The index also penalizes for different risk factors, “ranging from those of behavioral nature to environmental characteristics.” These include prevalence of smoking, alcohol consumption, obesity and childhood malnutrition, among others.It may not be so surprising that Israel is in the top 10 given it shares a Mediterranean diet with the two top countries, Spain and Italy. The Bloomberg report notes a study by the University of Navarra Medical School, which said “Mediterranean diet, supplemented with extra-virgin olive oil or nuts, had a lower rate of major cardiovascular events than those assigned to a reduced-fat diet.”The Israeli diet appears to be working. Israel received an overall health grade of 88.15, with a health score of 92.01. Spain, the winner, earned an overall grade of 92.75 and a health score of 96.56.One hundred and sixty nine World Heath Organization states were included in the Bloomberg study.
