How healthy is Southwest Michigan, and how can each county improve in the coming years?

Between June 12 and September 30, 2026, we compiled county-level health data for Kalamazoo County and the eight counties around it: Allegan, Barry, Calhoun, St. Joseph, and Van Buren, which share a border with Kalamazoo, plus Berrien, Cass, and Branch across the southwest corner of the state. Together the nine counties hold roughly 967,000 residents.

Our dataset draws on model-based estimates built from the federal Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System, which we normalized, rounded, and age-adjusted so that a younger county such as Kalamazoo, home to two universities, can be compared fairly with older, more rural neighbors. Every regional average in this report is weighted by population. Two definitions matter throughout: adult obesity is the share of adults with a body mass index of 30 or higher, and physical inactivity is the share of adults who report no leisure-time physical activity in the past month.

County-level figures are useful because the baseline changes within a 45-minute drive. A resident of Portage and a resident of Coldwater start from measurably different places on activity, sleep, and chronic disease risk, and as a Kalamazoo personal training practice that works with clients across the region, we find that knowing the local baseline is the first step in building a realistic plan. In the sections below, we break the data down by county, by type of health marker, and by how Kalamazoo compares with its neighbors.

Adult Obesity and Physical Inactivity by County

In the table below, we rank all nine counties by adult obesity and pair each figure with physical inactivity and the two chronic conditions most closely tied to both, diabetes and high blood pressure.

The Adult Obesity and Physical Inactivity by County, 2026

Rank	County	Population	Adult Obesity	Physical Inactivity	Diabetes	High Blood Pressure
1	Calhoun	133,000	42.1%	26.9%	11.4%	35.2%
2	Van Buren	76,000	39.6%	26.4%	10.9%	32.3%
3	Berrien	152,000	39.3%	25.3%	10.9%	33.3%
4	Kalamazoo	262,000	39.2%	22.8%	9.8%	30.6%
5	St. Joseph	61,000	37.9%	25.0%	10.8%	32.5%
6	Barry	64,000	36.7%	22.2%	9.2%	30.0%
7	Cass	52,000	36.3%	25.2%	9.8%	32.7%
8	Branch	45,000	35.6%	27.2%	10.7%	34.4%
9	Allegan	122,000	35.2%	23.8%	9.1%	30.4%
	Nine-County Average	967,000	38.6%	24.6%	10.3%	32.1%

• We found that Calhoun County has the highest adult obesity rate in the region at 42.1%, 3.5 points above the nine-county average, and it also leads the region in diabetes and high blood pressure.
• Our data showed that Kalamazoo County has the second-lowest physical inactivity rate in the region at 22.8%, yet its obesity rate of 39.2% sits slightly above the regional average, which suggests activity alone does not explain the county’s weight profile.
• We observed a spread of 6.9 points between the highest and lowest obesity rates, with Allegan County lowest at 35.2%, and a spread of 5.0 points in inactivity, from Barry County at 22.2% to Branch County at 27.2%.

Physical Health and Care Access by County

In the table below, we break down self-reported physical health, mobility, and access to routine care, the measures that most directly shape how much activity a resident can realistically take on.

The Physical Health and Care Access by County, 2026

County	Fair or Poor Health	Frequent Physical Distress	Mobility Disability	Annual Checkup	Uninsured (18 to 64)
Allegan	17.2%	13.2%	11.0%	76.8%	7.8%
Barry	17.2%	12.5%	11.4%	76.8%	6.9%
Berrien	19.4%	14.2%	12.8%	76.7%	8.0%
Branch	20.5%	15.3%	13.7%	75.9%	9.2%
Calhoun	19.5%	14.4%	13.2%	78.1%	7.7%
Cass	18.8%	14.1%	12.1%	77.4%	7.6%
Kalamazoo	16.9%	12.3%	11.3%	78.3%	6.6%
St. Joseph	20.6%	14.1%	13.5%	76.7%	9.0%
Van Buren	20.7%	14.7%	13.7%	77.6%	9.6%
Nine-County Average	18.5%	13.6%	12.2%	77.4%	7.7%

Frequent physical distress reflects adults who report 14 or more days of poor physical health in the past month, and mobility disability reflects serious difficulty walking or climbing stairs. Read together, these two columns describe the share of each county for whom a standard exercise prescription would need modification. The pattern in our data is consistent: Kalamazoo County posts the lowest rates of fair or poor health (16.9%) and frequent physical distress (12.3%), along with the lowest uninsured rate and the highest annual checkup rate in the region. Branch, Van Buren, and St. Joseph counties cluster at the other end on nearly every column. The checkup figures vary by less than three points across all nine counties, which indicates that routine care reaches residents at similar rates and that the larger differences arise between appointments, in daily movement, sleep, and diet.

Mental Health, Sleep, and Daily Habits by County

In the table below, we compare the behavioral and mental health measures that tend to travel with physical inactivity: depression, mental distress, short sleep, smoking, and binge drinking.

The Mental Health, Sleep, and Daily Habits by County, 2026

County	Depression	Frequent Mental Distress	Short Sleep	Current Smoking	Binge Drinking
Allegan	27.1%	18.8%	31.4%	15.3%	20.5%
Barry	27.8%	18.3%	33.4%	14.8%	19.1%
Berrien	26.8%	19.4%	38.8%	15.7%	17.2%
Branch	28.5%	20.5%	35.7%	18.6%	18.2%
Calhoun	27.5%	19.8%	35.8%	17.2%	16.3%
Cass	28.9%	19.7%	36.0%	16.9%	17.7%
Kalamazoo	29.0%	19.0%	29.2%	14.3%	18.7%
St. Joseph	28.8%	19.6%	36.7%	17.6%	18.3%
Van Buren	29.0%	19.5%	35.2%	16.4%	16.9%
Nine-County Average	28.1%	19.3%	33.8%	15.8%	18.1%

• We found that short sleep, defined as fewer than seven hours a night, is the most variable measure in this report, ranging from 29.2% in Kalamazoo County to 38.8% in Berrien County, a gap of 9.6 points.
• Our data showed that Kalamazoo County carries the region’s lowest smoking rate at 14.3% but ties for the highest depression rate at 29.0%, a combination consistent with its younger, student-heavy population.
• We observed that binge drinking runs opposite to most other risk measures, peaking in Allegan County at 20.5% and falling to its lowest point in Calhoun County at 16.3%.

Kalamazoo County vs. Its Neighbors

In the table below, we place every measure in this report side by side, comparing Kalamazoo County with the nine-county average and naming the lowest and highest county for each one.

The Kalamazoo County vs. Its Neighbors, 2026

Measure	Kalamazoo	Nine-County Average	Lowest County	Highest County
Adult obesity	39.2%	38.6%	Allegan (35.2%)	Calhoun (42.1%)
Physical inactivity	22.8%	24.6%	Barry (22.2%)	Branch (27.2%)
Diabetes	9.8%	10.3%	Allegan (9.1%)	Calhoun (11.4%)
High blood pressure	30.6%	32.1%	Barry (30.0%)	Calhoun (35.2%)
Fair or poor health	16.9%	18.5%	Kalamazoo (16.9%)	Van Buren (20.7%)
Frequent physical distress	12.3%	13.6%	Kalamazoo (12.3%)	Branch (15.3%)
Mobility disability	11.3%	12.2%	Allegan (11.0%)	Branch (13.7%)
Depression	29.0%	28.1%	Berrien (26.8%)	Van Buren (29.0%)
Frequent mental distress	19.0%	19.3%	Barry (18.3%)	Branch (20.5%)
Short sleep	29.2%	33.8%	Kalamazoo (29.2%)	Berrien (38.8%)
Current smoking	14.3%	15.8%	Kalamazoo (14.3%)	Branch (18.6%)
Binge drinking	18.7%	18.1%	Calhoun (16.3%)	Allegan (20.5%)
Annual checkup	78.3%	77.4%	Branch (75.9%)	Kalamazoo (78.3%)
Uninsured (18 to 64)	6.6%	7.7%	Kalamazoo (6.6%)	Van Buren (9.6%)

Across the 14 measures in our model, Kalamazoo County records the most favorable value in the region on six and beats the population-weighted average on eleven. The three exceptions are adult obesity, depression, and binge drinking, where Kalamazoo sits at or above the regional figure. That profile, a county that moves more, sleeps more, and smokes less than its neighbors while carrying an above-average obesity rate, is the most useful single finding in this dataset. It indicates that in Southwest Michigan, activity levels and body weight move together only loosely at the county level, and that nutrition, stress, and sleep quality likely account for much of the remaining difference. As with any model-based estimate, these figures describe populations rather than individuals, and the current preponderance of data is our best guide until the next survey cycle refines it.

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