Nearly 40% of Americans are stressed by politics with some even contemplating suicide, finds study
Politics in the United States is reportedly stressing citizens out, even leading some of them to contemplate suicide, according to a study published on Wednesday, September 25.
Researchers from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, through a survey, found out that almost 40 percent of people in America said that the country's politics was causing them stress, with one in five reportedly losing sleep over President Donald Trump.
Out of the people surveyed, at least four percent of them said that they have been pushed to the brink of contemplating taking their own lives because of politics-related stress.
The percentage translates to nearly 10 million adults. In the US, political tensions are at an all-time high with the House of Representatives launching a formal impeachment inquiry against Trump.
The probe comes after reports emerged that he had pressurized Ukraine to probe the family of his political rival, former vice president Joe Biden, who is now the top Democratic contender in the 2020 elections.
Studies conducted previously on political stress factors in the country had solely focused on economic costs, like time lost from work to vote or the monetary costs of supporting a particular campaign.
The lead author of the research, Dr. Kevin Smith, however, said that this particular study is the first to look at the physical and emotional costs of paying attention to and participating in political discourse. Smith is a professor of political science at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln.
Smith, in a statement, said: "It became apparent, especially during the 2016 electoral season, that this was a polarized nation, and it was getting even more politically polarized. The cost of that polarization on individuals had not fully been accounted for by social scientists or, indeed, health researchers."
The findings of the study were first published in the journal PLOS One. Reports state that the research team recruited 800 people to complete a 32-question survey on four categories: physical health, mental health, regretted behavior and social/lifestyle costs.
The study concluded that many Americans believe that their mental health has been harmed by exposure to politics in some way.
Nearly 30 percent of those surveyed said that they had lost their temper because of politics, while around 20 percent said that differences in political views have damaged a friendship.
According to the lead researcher, the findings of the study are similar to a public health crisis: "Quite a few of the numbers jumped out at me. Politics is really negatively affecting a lot of people's lives, or at least, they're perceiving that politics is really negatively affecting their lives in deep and meaningful ways."