People in Connecticut should rest easy, we lead the best lives of anyone in the country, according to a new study.
Connecticut came out on top on the American Human Development Index authored by Sarah Burd-Sharps and Kristen Lewis of the American Human Development Project.
The study uses government data to measure what the authors call the three basic building blocks of a good life -- health, education and income.
"Economic indicators like GDP measure how the economy is doing. The American Human Development Index measures how ordinary Americans are doing in areas of vital importance to all of us," Burd-Sharps said.
The index is part of a new report called "The Measure of America 2010-2011".
West Virginia was last in this year's index.
In addition to a state-by-state breakdown, the study also ranks every congressional district nationwide on the same three criteria.
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It also looked at gaps between different races and genders across the country.
Asian-Americans as a group live thirteen years longer than African-Americans, twelve years longer than Native Americans, eight years longer than whites and four years longer than Latinos, according to the study.
