Survey links rising debt to many health problems

Jeannine Aversa

Washington —- The stress from deepening debt is becoming a major pain in the neck —- and the back and the head and the stomach.

When people are dealing with piles of debt, they're much more likely to report health problems, too, according to an Associated Press-AOL Health survey. And not just little stuff; this means ulcers, severe depression and heart attacks.

Take Edward Driscoll, 38, of Braintree, Mass. He blames debt —- $10,000 worth —- for contributing to his ulcers and his wife Kimberly's panic attacks. "Just worrying, worrying, worrying, you know, where the next payment of this is going to come from," he says.

Although most people appear to be managing their debts all right, perhaps 10 million to 16 million are "suffering terribly due to their debts, and their health is likely to be negatively impacted," says Paul J. Lavrakas, a research psychologist and AP consultant who analyzed the results of the survey. Those are people who reported high levels of debt stress and suffered from at least three stress-related illnesses, he says.

That finding is supported by medical research that has linked chronic stress to a wide range of ailments.

And the current tough economic times and rising costs of living seem to be leading to increasing debt stress, 14 percent higher this year than in 2004, according to an index tied to the AP-AOL survey.

Among the people reporting high-debt stress:

> 27 percent had ulcers or digestive problems, compared with 8 percent of those with low levels of debt stress.

> 44 percent had migraines or other headaches, compared with 15 percent.

> 29 percent suffered severe anxiety, compared with 4 percent.

> 23 percent had severe depression, compared with 4 percent.

> 6 percent reported heart attacks, double the rate for those with low debt stress.

> More than half, 51 percent, had muscle tension, including lower back pain, compared with 31 percent with low levels of debt stress.

People who reported high stress also were much more likely to have trouble concentrating and sleeping and were more prone to getting upset for no good reason.

When their construction business went under four years ago, Pamela Crouch, 61, and her husband, who had retired from General Motors, found themselves struggling under IOUs totaling $30,000.

"We just kind of felt desperate. We just really didn't have enough to live on to pay what we had to pay," recalls Crouch, of Eaton, Ind.

She remembers having trouble sleeping and concentrating. "We ended up paying a lot of our bills just on the credit card," says Crouch, a nursing home medical aide. "We were stressed and depressed."

Their son, a business manager, recently helped out with their debt problems. "It made a world of difference in how we feel," she says.

Research indicates most of the symptoms reported in the poll are typical of chronic stress. The body reacts with a "fight or flight" response, releasing adrenaline and the hormone cortisol. That helps you react fast in an emergency, but if the body remains in high gear, those chemicals can wreak havoc in numerous systems —- everything from a rise in blood pressure and heart rate to problems with memory, mood, digestion —- even the immune system.