The CBD oil products company CBDfx study explored data from the United Health Foundation’s American Health Rankings to see which states had the highest rates of people reporting stress.
The study found that West Virginia had the highest mental and physical distress rate, making it the most stressed state. The data reports that 17.5% of citizens suffer from frequent mental distress, and 15.8% suffer from frequent physical distress. Combining these statistics, it scores 99.16 out of 100 on the ‘stress score’.
Alabama comes eighth on the list, with 15.8% of residents suffering from frequent mental distress and 11.8% suffering from frequent physical distress, with the state scoring 81.72 out of 100 for stress in the study.
Kentucky comes in second place, with the state coming in with a stress score of 96.98 out of 100. This is due to 17.4% of citizens suffering from frequent mental distress and 15.2% from frequent physical distress.
Coming in third place is Arkansas, which takes its place with a stress score of 94.94 out of 100. The state sees 17.8% of citizens suffer from frequent mental distress in the study, which is the highest of any state, but 14.2% suffer from frequent physical distress, meaning it takes second.
Louisiana comes in fourth place, with a stress score of 91.21. In the southeastern state, 17.6% of citizens reported frequent mental distress, and 13.2% reported frequent physical distress.
Among the top five is Nevada, with a stress score of 90.68 out of 100, with 17.3% of citizens reporting frequent mental distress and 13.3% reporting frequent physical distress.
| Rank | Name | Frequent mental distress % | Frequent physical distress % | Stress score /100 |
| 1 | West Virginia | 17.5 | 15.8 | 99.16 |
| 2 | Kentucky | 17.4 | 15.2 | 96.98 |
| 3 | Arkansas | 17.8 | 14.2 | 94.94 |
| 4 | Louisiana | 17.6 | 13.2 | 91.21 |
| 5 | Nevada | 17.3 | 13.3 | 90.68 |
| 6 | Oklahoma | 15.9 | 12.7 | 84.85 |
| 7 | South Carolina | 14.7 | 13.2 | 83.06 |
| 8 | Alabama | 15.8 | 11.8 | 81.72 |
| 9 | Michigan | 15.8 | 11.3 | 80.14 |
| 10 | Tennessee | 16.1 | 10.8 | 79.40 |
Using the same methodology, South Dakota is the ‘least stressed’ of any state, with just 9.4% of citizens reporting frequent mental distress and 7.9% reporting suffering from frequent physical distress.
Commenting on the findings, a spokesperson from CBDfx said: “While today there are many causes of stress, with some examples being your occupation, finances, or relationships with others, it’s important to note that there are many ways of dealing with stress as well. This contrasts with the least stressed and most stressed states so interesting, particularly because some of these states are in the same region of the country.”
