Does Wealth = Health? Money Problems = High Stress = Shorter Life

First we learn, from a study published in the American Journal of Public Health, that people who fall behind on their mortgage payments suffer more depressive symptoms, more food insecurity and are more likely to not take prescription medications because they can’t afford them, than people with no mortgage problems. That study, which surveyed 2,500 people over the age of 50, found that 22 percent of those who had failed to keep up with their mortgage developed elevated depressive symptoms, compared to just 3 percent of the non-delinquent payers. Wait, there’s more: from researchers at Oregon State University we learn that men who experience persistently moderate or high levels of stressful life events over a number of years have a 50 percent higher mortality rate. The good news?  An Oregon State news release reports that the same study, which analyzed data from 1,000 middle-class and working-class men for an 18-year period, found moderate drinkers lived longer than non-drinkers.