With the emergence of the Industry 4.0 era in China, more refined methods are being proposed for healthy living requirements for human settlements. Since the rural human settlements in China are relatively backward, this study aimed to investigate the influencing factors of human health. First, through field surveys and questionnaires conducted with villagers in Xiangxi’s traditional villages in Hunan Province, we analyzed the factors affecting human health qualitatively and quantitatively using the SPSS software. We identified three main dimensions affecting human health in rural human settlements including human behavioral activities, physical environment, and natural environment. Then, we used correlation analysis and multiple linear regression analysis methods to analyze the correlation between environmental factors and human health. The results showed that human activities, building physical environment, and natural environment are significantly correlated with human health. Among them, human behavior has the strongest correlation with health. This research contributes to creating healthy human settlements and guiding the creation of a healthy environment in rural China.

Under the macro context of severe global aging, the typical villages and dwellings of the Miao ethnic group in western Hunan were selected, and the daily life and health status of the local elderly were evaluated through behavioral observation, interviews, and questionnaires (e.g., physiological, psychological, and residential environments). In addition, the health status and relevant evaluation factors of the respondents were correlated and then analyzed using SPSS software. As indicated by the results of this study, the local elderly used all the spaces and functions of the existing dwellings and were satisfied with the spaces except for the toilet. In addition, their physiological functions had declined, and their daily behaviors were affected by a wide variety of physical diseases. From a psychological perspective, more than 60% of the elderly had significant feelings of loneliness and frustration. As indicated by the correlation results, the health status of the elderly in traditional Miao dwellings in western Hunan was positively correlated with family, income, daily acts, dwellings, and infrastructure, and negatively correlated with age. They showed linear correlations with all impact factors: Health = 157.44 − 5.242 ∗ Gender − 1.611 ∗ Age − 0.606 ∗ Education level − 0.411 ∗ Family + 0.001 ∗ Income − 7.191 ∗ Daily acts + 13.621 ∗ Dwelling + 4.682 ∗ Infrastructure + 17.198 ∗ Natural. Based on the results of study, targeted improvement strategies were proposed for the elderly in traditional Miao dwellings in western Hunan from four aspects—infrastructure, traditional dwellings, mental health, and policy support—to improve the health status of the elderly in traditional Chinese villages and towns.