Women more stressed than ever

Americans feel more stress than ever, a new survey found.

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University found that older people see reduced stress as they age.

The data also showed that women and young people tended to have higher stress levels compared to others, said USA Today.

Indeed, stress levels increased 18 percent for women and 24 percent for men from 1983 and 2009 surveys.

According to CBS News, the study, the first to be able to track stress levels through time, examined telephone surveys using a questionnaire called the Perceived Stress Scale to measure what people consider stressful.

The study used data from 1983 surveying over 2000 adults and other similar surveys in 2006 and 2009.

Researchers say that understanding the demographics of stress could aid in treatment.

"We know that stress contributes to poorer health practices, increased risk for disease,
accelerated disease progression and increased mortality," said study author Sheldon Cohen of Carnegie Mellon University in a press release.

"Differences in stress between demographics may be important markers of populations under increased risk for physical and psychological disorders."

The study was published in the Journal of Applied Social Psychology.