A healthy life means a happy life. Forbes Magazine recently published a study they conducted about the best places on earth where living means happiness. The report was released by the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development, a group of 30 countries based in Paris which gathered data in different countries' economic and social statistics data.
Here are the countries that made it to the top 10 list of the happiest places to live on earth and their respective scores.
- Denmark - 92.3
- Finland - 85.9
- Netherlands - 85.1
- Sweden - 82.7
- Ireland - 81.1
- Canada - 78.0
- Switzerland - 77.4
- New Zealand - 76.7
- Norway - 76.5
- Belgium - 76.3
Clearly, most of the countries that made it to the top 10 are countries from Northern Europe. Experts says that this is because of the region's combination of economic stability, work-life balance, unemployment rate and overall achievement of one individual in their own country.
Economic stability is one of the most important factor that makes an individual satisfied. Countries in the top 10 are productive and has some of the world's highest GDP. Another is the work-life balance. Northern European countries has an average of 37 working hours per week as compared to countries like China
which has about 47 hrs per week. Unemployment is also a factor for happiness. Not having or having a job will definitely affect the happiness of one individual.
According to Dr. Tony Delamothe, who wrote a happiness editorial on 2005 on the British Medical Journal, most individuals in developed and developing countries "get richer during their lifetimes, but not happier". According to him it is family, social and community networks that bring joy to one's life.
