Although obesity rates, smoking, drinking and other issues that are getting attention were among the statistics included in a community health report out this week showing where Carroll County could use improvement, one survey category that got less attention, but has been a problem for years, is the high number of people who commute outside the county each day to work and the toll that takes on our overall health.
Hours spent in a vehicle getting to and from work take away from the quality family time that can contribute to healthier lifestyles. Additionally, people who have to rise early for a long commute, and who don't return until later in the evening are less likely to be engaged in their community. Time is always at a premium. The constant rush takes a toll on overall health. Plus, dealing with daily traffic issues can cause additional stress in our lives.
The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation this week released its annual report ranking counties across the U.S. for a variety of health factors.
Some of the areas where Carroll needs work, such as the percent of residents who smoke (18 percent), or the percentage of those who are obese (28 percent), are areas that have already been identified by the Partnership for a Healthier Carroll as areas targeted for improvement. But it is hard to get residents involved in community programs if they are already crunched for time.
According to the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation report, 84 percent of workers drive alone in their vehicles, and of those who drive alone, 58 percent have a commute of 30 minutes or more.
Driving and commuting time is used in the study, according to the foundation website, because "A 2012 study in the American Journal of Preventive Medicine found that the farther people commute by vehicle, the higher their blood pressure and body mass index. Also, the farther they commute, the less physical activity the individual participated in."
Over the years, ride-share programs have been initiated with various degrees of success. Public transportation generally is not an option for Carroll workers. And dealing with a long commute is one of the tradeoffs that families typically make when they move from urban areas to more rural ones.
There are no easy answers. Carroll has been a bedroom community for the Baltimore and Washington metropolitan regions for decades, and that isn't likely to change any time soon. And perhaps if we are successful in bringing down the percentages in some of the other health-related areas, the impact of long commutes will be further reduced. But as they develop programs to help us improve our health and quality of life, officials should keep in mind the number of commuters, and the impact those commutes have on our communities.
