WHATCOM COUNTY, WA (MyBellinghamNow.com) – Whatcom County residents tend to have long lives, but we don’t enjoy the longest life expectancy in the state.

The Seattle Times broke down the data on county-by-county life expectancy compiled by the University of Wisconsin’s Population Health Institute.

They found that San Juan County residents live the longest at an average of 86.3 years. Whatcom County is near the top at an even 80 years of life. Other counties topping the list are Skamania, King, Douglas, Island, Kittitas and Jefferson respectively.

The county with the lowest life expectancy is Pend Oreille at just under 75 years.

Many factors contribute to longevity including lifestyle, health choices, environment and social and economic factors.

Ironically, Whatcom County’s long expectancy comes despite its residents reporting the heaviest drinking of Washington’s counties and a higher drinking rate than the national average.

To read more about how Whatcom measures up to the rest of Washington and the U.S., you can read the stats on County Health Rankings’ website.