Chatham Has Among The Lowest 'Stressflation' Rates In NJ: Study

CHATHAM, NJ — Long work hours, high inflation and financial fears are causing increased stress levels for Americans.

But Chatham residents have a very low rate of “stressflation,” according to a recent study.“Stressflation” is a measurement of increased stress, both mentally and physically, due to factors like COVID-19 health worries, high inflation and financial concerns.

A biotech products distribution company, MyBioSource.com, recently conducted a study of physical and mental distress data from County Health Rankings over the past five years in New Jersey

And at 3 percent, residents of Morris County have among the lowest “stressflation” levels in the Garden State, according to the study.

Cumberland County had the highest "stressflation" over the last five years, with an 8 percent increase. Residents in this area, in particular, experienced a 4 percent increase in both physical and mental stress.

Morris County saw a 3 percent increase in stress levels over the past five years, with residents seeing a 1 percent increase in physical stress and 2 percent in mental stress.

The most Zen-like county, according to the study, was Hudson which had a 1 percent increase in the rate of mental stress, and a 0 percent change in physical stress.

MyBioSource.com also broke down this data at a national and state level. The state with the highest stress inflation rate over the past 5 years was Maine at 6 percent, and New York saw the lowest stress inflation rate in the country. In fact, New York actually experienced a stress deflation rate of 2 percent.

Here are the top 5 NJ counties with the highest “stressflation” rates:

1. Cumberland
2. Salem
3. Atlantic
4. Cape May
5. Hunterdon

Here are the top 5 NJ counties with the lowest “stressflation” rates:

1. Hudson
2. Somerset
3. Morris
4. Monmouth
5. Union

More information is available here. A link to a spreadsheet used in the study is available here.