Photo: Teemu08 · CC BY-SA 3.0On CDC estimates, Lake Forest is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns
Lake Forest differs from Illinois on 22 of 32 measures CDC estimates: 21 better, 1 worse.
Modeled estimates for adults 18+, CDC’s own estimate for Lake Forest. How CDC estimates town health
What stands out about health in Lake Forest
Lake Forest is older than Illinois, yet healthier on chronic conditions
Lake Forest runs below Illinois on four chronic conditions, most of all COPD (4.4% vs 6.3%), stroke (2.6% vs 3.3%) and diabetes (9.4% vs 11.7%). That’s despite an older population: 27% of residents are 65 or older (Illinois 17%). Conditions ↓
Against towns with similar incomes, Lake Forest’s lead shrinks
Lake Forest is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns, but 60% of the 539 towns with similar household incomes ($176K–$294K). Part of its edge is what towns with its incomes tend to have. Health Grade ↓
Lake Forest is an active town
Only 13.5% of adults get no exercise outside work, vs 23% across Illinois. The town has 35 miles of trails across 25 parks and preserves. Habits ↓
Cancer runs high in Lake Forest
1 in 9 adults have had cancer (10.7%), vs 7.6% across Illinois. Age is part of it: 27% of residents are 65 or older (Illinois 17%), and cancer is more common later in life. Conditions ↓
Lake Forest has a five-star hospital
Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital is rated 5 of 5 stars by Medicare and has an emergency room. Getting care ↓
Written from the CDC, Medicare and HRSA data on this page. CDC PLACES 2025 release: modeled estimates for adults, not counts; “higher” and “lower” mean the Illinois figure falls outside Lake Forest’s likely range.
What’s behind Lake Forest’s grade
On seven CDC estimates for adults, Lake Forest is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns, #14 of 767 in Illinois. All seven estimates beat the typical U.S. town. The strongest is no exercise (fewer adults who get no exercise than almost every town); the weakest is diabetes, still better than 87%.
Health estimates follow income closely across the country: towns with higher household incomes usually score higher (a correlation of 0.77 across 21,157 graded towns). Lake Forest’s median household income is $235,081; among the 539 U.S. towns within 25% of that ($176K–$294K), it’s healthier than 60%, about where its income would put it.
Out of every 100 Lake Forest adults…
Lake Forest runs below IL on 5 of 12 conditions and above it on 1. Tap one to see it as people.
Lake Forest is an older town: 27% of residents are 65 or older, vs 17% across Illinois. Cancer rise with age, so higher rates here say as much about who lives in Lake Forest as about how healthy they are.
Everyday habits, side by side with Illinois
Share of adults, with the Illinois figure marked.
35 miles of trails across 25 parks and preserves
Care in and near Lake Forest
1 hospital in Lake Forest, plus the nearest just outside it.
Hospitals: Medicare overall star ratings, 1–5. Community health centers charge on a sliding scale by income. Distances are straight-line from the center of Lake Forest; ≈ marks a hospital located by its town, not its street. Shortage areas: HRSA Health Professional Shortage Areas (a “population” designation covers specific residents, such as those with low incomes).
Keeping up with care
Share of Lake Forest adults getting routine care. The full ring is 100%; the dark tick marks Illinois.
How Lake Forest adults are doing
On 3 of 4 measures, Lake Forest does better than Illinois.
1 in 4 Lake Forest adults feel lonely. A hello is a start.
Groups are the easiest way in: a walking group, a book club, your street.
If you or someone you know is struggling, call or text 988, the Suicide & Crisis Lifeline. It’s free, confidential and open 24/7.
Making ends meet
Needs that shape health as much as any doctor visit: food, housing, utilities and a way to get around.
4% of Lake Forest adults receive SNAP (food stamps), compared with 13.8% across Illinois.
Lake Forest and the towns around it
Lake Forest’s Health Grade ranks 2nd of 8 graded towns around it.
Nearby towns are shaded from CDC’s estimates for their ZIP codes, or CDC’s own figure for cities and villages.
Health next door
| Town | Health | Obesity | Diabetes | Smoking | Figures from |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lake Forest | A+ | 27.8% | 9.4% | 6.4% | CDC place |
| Shields Township | A | 31% | 9.8% | 8.8% | ZIP codes |
| Moraine Township | A+ | 29.6% | 9.9% | 7.2% | ZIP codes |
| Highland Park | A+ | 29.3% | 9.8% | 6.9% | CDC place |
| Mettawa | — | — | — | — | |
| Lake Bluff | A+ | 28.9% | 9.2% | 7.1% | CDC place |
| Highwood | B+ | 36.2% | 12.3% | 11.6% | CDC place |
| Bannockburn | A+ | 25.8% | 7.6% | 5.6% | CDC place |
Mettawa: fewer than 1,000 residents. Same-state neighbors only, ordered by length of shared border.
Living with a disability
Shown without a better/worse judgment.
of Lake Forest adults live with a disability (Illinois 27.6%). Walking or climbing stairs is the most common.
Every CDC estimate for Lake Forest
Share of adults, 40 measures, with CDC’s likely range.
On the 32 measures below that have a better and a worse direction, Lake Forest is better than Illinois on 21 and worse on 1; on the rest, the Illinois figure falls inside Lake Forest’s likely range, so we call them about the same. Disability and SNAP are described, not compared as better or worse.
| Adults who… | Lake Forest | IL | U.S. | vs IL |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Overall health | ||||
| Fair or poor health | 10.7%9.2–12.4 | 18.6% | 19.4% | Better |
| Frequent physical distress (physical health not good 14+ days a month) | 9%7.8–10.2 | 12.2% | 13% | Better |
| Frequent mental distress (mental health not good 14+ days a month) | 11.6%10.1–13.1 | 15.6% | 15.9% | Better |
| Conditions | ||||
| Obesity | 27.8%23.2–32.5 | 34% | 32.9% | Better |
| Diabetes | 9.4%8–10.8 | 11.7% | 12% | Better |
| High blood pressure | 32.5%28.9–36 | 33% | 34.4% | About the same |
| High cholesterol (adults screened in 5 years) | 38.9%35.1–42.6 | 35.4% | 37.1% | About the same |
| Arthritis | 24.3%21.3–27.2 | 24.2% | 25.3% | About the same |
| Asthma | 8.9%7.8–10 | 9.9% | 9.9% | About the same |
| Cancer, other than skin cancer | 10.7%9.7–11.7 | 7.6% | 7.9% | Worse |
| Coronary heart disease | 5.4%4.8–6.1 | 5.9% | 6.4% | About the same |
| COPD | 4.4%3.8–5.1 | 6.3% | 6.3% | Better |
| Stroke | 2.6%2.3–2.8 | 3.3% | 3.4% | Better |
| Lost all teeth (ages 65+) | 5.7%4.6–7.1 | 10.3% | 12.3% | Better |
| Habits | ||||
| Smoke cigarettes | 6.4%5.3–7.6 | 12.1% | 11.8% | Better |
| No exercise outside work | 13.5%11.1–16.1 | 23% | 24.7% | Better |
| Binge drinking | 15.6%13–18.2 | 17.8% | 15.4% | About the same |
| Sleep under 7 hours | 27%22.7–31.7 | 35.4% | 36% | Better |
| Checkups and coverage | ||||
| No health insurance (ages 18–64) | 3.8%3.1–4.6 | 9.9% | 11% | Better |
| Checkup in the past year | 80.4%77.4–83.2 | 77.8% | 77.4% | About the same |
| Dentist visit in the past year | 76.8%74.2–79.6 | 63.4% | 63.2% | Better |
| Cholesterol check in 5 years | 91.5%90.2–92.7 | 87.4% | 87.1% | Better |
| Taking blood pressure medicine (adults with high blood pressure) | 78.7%75.5–81.5 | 75.7% | 76.5% | About the same |
| Colorectal cancer screening (ages 45–75) | 70.4%66.1–74.6 | 60.2% | 65.5% | Better |
| Mammogram in 2 years (women 50–74) | 78.3%72–84.1 | 73.5% | 76.4% | About the same |
| Mind and connection | ||||
| Ever told they have depression | 17.8%15.1–20.6 | 19.8% | 20.6% | About the same |
| Feel lonely | 27.1%23.3–31.1 | 33.5% | 32.5% | Better |
| Lack social and emotional support | 18%15.5–20.9 | 25.4% | 23.6% | Better |
| Everyday needs | ||||
| Worried about having enough food | 5.3%4.4–6.5 | 15.9% | 15% | Better |
| Worried about keeping housing | 4.9%4.1–5.8 | 13.2% | 12% | Better |
| Threatened with a utility shut-off | 3.1%2.6–3.6 | 7.8% | 7.6% | Better |
| Lack reliable transportation | 3.6%3–4.1 | 8% | 7.9% | Better |
| Received SNAP (food stamps) | 4%3.1–5 | 13.8% | 11.6% | Lower |
| Disability | ||||
| Any disability | 19.7%16.9–22.7 | 27.6% | 30.1% | Lower |
| Difficulty walking or climbing stairs | 8.9%7.6–10.4 | 12.8% | 13.6% | Lower |
| Difficulty concentrating or remembering | 8.1%6.9–9.3 | 12.6% | 13.9% | Lower |
| Hearing difficulty | 6%5.3–6.8 | 6.2% | 6.7% | About the same |
| Vision difficulty | 2.7%2.4–3 | 4.8% | 5.4% | Lower |
| Difficulty doing errands alone | 4.7%4.1–5.4 | 7.6% | 7.9% | Lower |
| Difficulty dressing or bathing | 2.1%1.8–2.3 | 3.5% | 3.8% | Lower |
Each figure is the share of adults 18+ unless the label says otherwise; small numbers after it are CDC’s likely range (95% interval). “About the same” means the Illinois figure falls inside that range.
Questions about health in Lake Forest
Is Lake Forest a healthy place to live?
On seven CDC estimates for adults, Lake Forest is healthier than 98% of U.S. towns: A+ for health, #14 of 767 in Illinois. Among U.S. towns with similar household incomes it’s healthier than 60%. These are modeled estimates of who lives there, not a measure of local care or habits alone.
What is the obesity rate in Lake Forest?
CDC estimates 27.8% of adults have obesity, likely between 23.2% and 32.5%, against 34% across Illinois and 32.9% nationally.
What hospital is closest to Lake Forest?
Northwestern Lake Forest Hospital in Lake Forest, 1.6 miles in a straight line from Lake Forest’s center point, is the nearest general hospital with an emergency room; Medicare rates it 5 of 5 stars.
How many people in Lake Forest have no health insurance?
CDC estimates 3.8% of adults ages 18–64 have no health insurance (likely 3.1–4.6%), against 9.9% across Illinois.
How accurate are these numbers?
They’re modeled estimates: CDC applies national survey answers to each area’s age, sex, race and education mix, so they describe who lives in Lake Forest more than anything measured there. At the ends of CDC’s ranges the grade could be anywhere from A to A+.
Neighbors talk health
Doctors taking patients, urgent care, staying active in Lake Forest.
Health estimates: CDC PLACES: Local Data for Better Health, 2025 release. The Illinois figure combines its counties, weighted by adult population. Hospitals and star ratings: Medicare Care Compare (CMS). Health centers and shortage areas: HRSA. The Health Grade is our own summary of CDC’s estimates, not an official rating. Ages: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey. Town boundaries: U.S. Census Bureau. This page isn’t medical advice. In an emergency, call 911.