Poll finds LGBT people with lower well-being than non-LGBT people

By John Mack Freeman

A Gallup poll found that LGBT people have a lower rate of well-being than non-LGBT people. LGBT people scored 58 on their scale while non-LGBT people scored 62. Via Gallup:

Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index Scores, by LGBT Status

The financial and physical well-being of LGBT people when broken down was also lower, 10 and 7 points respectively. The numbers were higher for LGBT women, with non-LGBT women scoring 12 points higher in physical well-being.

Gallup’s bottom line:

Despite evidence of decreasing social stigma directed toward the LGBT community in the U.S., LGBT Americans — particularly LGBT women — show a wide range of well-being disparities compared with their non-LGBT counterparts. In measures of physical health, financial security, sense of purpose, social life, and community attachment, data from the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index reveal that LGBT adults experience a wide range of well-being challenges.

These disparities associated with sexual orientation and gender identity highlight the ongoing need for the inclusion of sexual orientation and gender identity measures in data collection focused on health and socio-economic outcomes. Availability of better data that identify the LGBT population will help researchers, healthcare policymakers, and healthcare providers craft better strategies to understand and prevent well-being disparities associated with sexual orientation and gender identity.

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