by Garth Meyer
A new Gallup National Health and Well-Being poll taken in the Beach Cities shows “historic highs,” at a time of national decreases.
Manhattan Beach, Hermosa Beach and Redondo Beach had a combined Well-Being Index of 69.5 for 2025, their best yet, surpassing the national average of 60.1.
The individual score for Manhattan Beach (71.6) was the top community measurement ever recorded by Gallup since the company started its Well-Being Index in 2008 – a total of 1,500 community studies nationwide. Manhattan Beach beat its own record of 70.6 from 2023.
The Well-Being Index (WBI) covers five areas: career, community, financial, physical and social.
The Beach Cities have seen improvements in each category for the past 10 years.
“All those boats (the Beach Cities) are lifting, while the tide’s going down,” said Dan Witters, Gallup’s WBI research director, during a Jan. 28 presentation to the Beach Cities Health District board. “The Beach Cities are outpacing the U.S. across most metrics, and their excellent improvement over time – despite a high starting point – has been impressive.”
Among specific results for the Beach Cities, alcohol consumption decreased in the last two years but remains 44% higher than the national average. Hermosa Beach residents reported 4.9 drinks per adult per week compared to 4.1 in Manhattan Beach and 3.1 in Redondo Beach. For the U.S. overall, the number is 2.5 drinks per week. The Beach cities average number of 3.6 drinks declined from 4.2 in 2023.
Loneliness, mental health and civility registered no change in the survey for the past two years, but the Beach Cities remain “considerably better” than the national average, Witters said.
Statistics for “Above Normal Weight” have declined by 15% here since 2010, coming in at 35% lower than the overall United States.
Daily loneliness is at 12% in the Beach Cities compared to 19% in the U.S.
Local respondents were also asked if there was a leader in their life who creates enthusiasm for the future. Just 34% answered yes, which is near the national level of 30%,.
“Significant Daily Stress” in the Beach Cities registered at 45.9% last year, down six points from 2010. The current number is 1.6 points better than the national average. Fifteen years ago, the Beach Cities came in at 5.9 points worse than the average.
Witters attributed the stress improvement to three major factors. First, more people here are exercising 30 minutes or more three times per week, from 56% in 2010 to 76% now. Second, people are eating more produce and eating healthy in general, and third, already low smoking rates have declined even further in the Beach Cities.
Topics cited as problematic in the 2025 local results include high cholesterol, which increased five percentage points in the last two years, now in line with the rest of the country.
For the term “Physical Health is Near Perfect,” Beach Cities respondents rated it at 4.7 points down last year, to 47%. In 2023, 51% concurred with the phrase.
“We have found household income to be the top predictor of well-being among individuals and large populations,” Witters said. “But highly affluent communities are proven to not be more likely to improve over time than other communities – improvement comes from other factors… Since 2015, the Beach Cities have outperformed the nation in all well-being indicators, while the national trend has seen scores fall.”
Since 2015, local WBI went up 3.6 points, while nationally it fell by 1.6.
The newest study was conducted last fall through the mail, with a web option. A total of 6,850 questionnaires were sent out in the Beach Cities, drawing 1,270 responses.
Paid for by the Beach Cities Health District, Gallup has surveyed this area for WBI nine times in the past 15 years, beginning in 2010, when the health district’s Blue Zones Project began.
“Data from the WBI gives us insights into the well-being of the Beach Cities community and informs our programs and decision-making process,” said Tom Bakaly, BCHD chief executive. “With this data, BCHD’s programming will continue to emphasize social connection and the development of empathy, kindness, and gratitude, and we’ll also offer opportunities to connect through community events, services, and spaces.”
For the “Thriving in life” metric, Witters said it was “really languishing in a bad place right now nationally.” It was close to the all-time lows of April 2020 and November 2008.
The Beach Cities are nonetheless up five points for this subject since 2010, from 64% to 70%. The overall U.S. number dropped from 53% to 48%.
Blue Zones impact?
The survey also asked about the Beach Cities Health District itself, showing that public opinion of the district has improved since 2020. Awareness increased from 67% to 71%. People within that group who expressed a favorable opinion of the district came in at 57%, two percentage points up since 2020. For those aware of BCHD, unfavorable opinions of it decreased from four percent in 2020 to three percent today.
Awareness of the BCHD Blue Zones project reached 50%, an all-time high.
The program is a “community health initiative that started here as a pilot program in 2010. It looks to make environmental and policy changes to make healthy choices easy choices,” described Jacquelyn Sun, BCHD director of policy & innovation.
Manhattan Beach leads the Beach Cities with 56% awareness of Blue Zones.
In public comment at the Jan. 28 BCHD board meeting, Sheila Lamb, a member of the Redondo Beach planning commission, said the poll “does not demonstrate that BCHD caused (this),” she said, noting only 10% of respondents reported that they have engaged in Blue Zones (activities).”
Income is the key, not BCHD, she said.
“What outcomes are attributable to its programs, and at what cost?” she said.
The board called Witters up for further comment.
“No one from Gallup or the Beach Cities Health District that I’m aware of has claimed that we have causal evidence between Blue Zones and improvement… What’s also true is the improvement we see here is much better than what we see in peer cities… We do parallel studies with peer cities all the time.”
Witters went on to suggest that it is natural to surmise that things not present in other cities may play a role in what makes another city different.
“National levels” means an overall score of other communities surveyed in the same quarter of 2025.
A total of 5,600 adults across the U.S. submitted information for last fall’s studies.
Gallup also does wellbeing surveys for individual cities, “mostly via our relationship with Blue Zones,” Witters said. “… We currently have active contracts with about 10 Blue Zones communities.”
Survey samples for the WBI Index are disproportionately older, Witters said, citing a natural interest in health in this age group.
“While this data shows our community is doing well. We are aware there is more work to be done,” Bakaly said. “BCHD is committed to continuing to improve the health of residents in our community.”
SIDEBAR:
Easy Reader asked Dan Witters, Gallup research director, a 35-year veteran of the polling company, to expound on this question.
ER: If income is the no. 1 predictor of well-being, why do you think that is, exactly? Is it that money gives access to better healthcare, etc., or is that people who are inclined to take care of themselves better tend to succeed more in the workplace, which leads to higher incomes? The phrase “Character is destiny” – is that a factor here? If so, is there any way to quantify it? Any overall thoughts on this?
DAN WITTERS: It’s many factors. Higher income individuals are more likely to work in interesting and engaging jobs that they like and where they use their natural strengths. They are more likely to live in communities where they feel safe walking outside, using available greenspace, biking and walking. They have better healthcare – sure – but also have better health literacy, and this is reflected in their health choices. They are more likely to go to the dentist and to have a personal doctor. And they are more likely to interact with other people in the same income range who share those wellbeing advantages, reinforcing those values and behaviors. But they are not more likely to improve in their wellbeing over time compared to those in lower income households. Improvement over time comes from other places. It’s important to remember that there is a substantial range in wellbeing among individuals inside of any given income band. So while the probabilities favor those with high household incomes, many fail to capitalize on that, while many of their lower income counterparts have terrific wellbeing despite their income. ER
