Category: Healthcare
- Published: 19 February 2009
eHealth Forum highlights detrimental effects of downturn on individual health and holds out a supportive hand: Economic recession help forum
20th February 2009: Today – eHealth Forum, one of the world's largest health sites, releases unsettling data regarding the direct effects the recession is having on respondents to its latest online survey. Over 3,000 people from US, UK and Canada answered questions relating to impact of the world's economic downturn on their personal lives. In response to the concerning results, eHealth Forum has also created a special forum to help people cope with the fall out of the recession.
eHealth Forum is a global health site dedicated to the people that use it. Members ask medical questions, join in discussions, simply listen, or offer and exchange helpful words and ideas. The site currently has over 2.5 million users a month and is available for free 24/7.
Health and the economic recession survey results:
Almost 60 percent (55.58% or 1,669 respondents) said that their sleep was affected with financial worries. Nearly 46 percent (45.82 % or 1,376 respondents) admitted that the were trying to hide their worries from their families. Over a quarter were concerned about losing their jobs (26.47% 795 respondents) and half were more irritable than usual, probably due to lack of sleep and anxiety (48.5% or 1,443 respondents) with a further 50 percent (50.65% and 1,521 respondents) noticing more tension in the head, neck and shoulders than usual.
The most crushing statistic of this recent poll, is that more than one third of participants (1,082 respondents) had recently gone without something in order to provide for their families... Pushing financial concerns to the back of one's mind actually make the problem worse. Escalating anxiety and festering issues can do yet more damage in the long run.
eHealth Forum community director, Lee Weber, said: “People are already showing very obvious signs of getting depressed and anxious about the current economic situation; we've seen a 300 percent increase in traffic to our depression forum, and 400 percent increase in our anxiety and stress forums. By encouraging people, and those around them, to offload their worries on the new Recession Forum at ehealthforum.com, we hope to share the load for those struggling with the emotional and physical effects of the global economic meltdown.”
This poll ran from January 12 - 30, 2009 and on two other days: December 17, 2008 and January 9, 2009.
