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Study says Utah is the second-least stressed state in America

It may come as a surprise to anyone trying to navigate rush hour along the Wasatch Front, but Utah is the second-least stressed state in the union, according to a new study.

WalletHub.com, a personal finance website, compared the states across 40 metrics — everything from average hours worked per week to personal bankruptcies to the percentage of adults who get enough sleep. Utahns ranked 49th overall — 49th in work-related stress; 47th in family-related stress; 37th in money-related stress; and 35th in health and safety-related stress.

If you're looking for someplace that might lower your blood pressure even more, Minnesota is the only state ranked behind (ahead?) of Utah in the WalletHub survey. Looking for more stress? Head southeast — Louisiana and Mississippi are ranked first and second.

Or, if long trips stress you out, next-door neighbor Nevada is ninth on the list. While Utah has the lowest rate of divorce and separation at 15.88 percent, Nevada has the highest, at 26.19 percent.

Here's how Utah ranked in several stress-level categories — first being the most stressed and 50th the least:

  • Divorce — 50th

  • Average hours worked per week — 50th

  • Percentage of adults in fair/poor health — 45th

  • Share of adults getting adequate sleep — 44th

  • Percentage of population living below the poverty line — 42nd

  • Psychologists per capita — 41st

  • Job security — 39th

  • Median credit score — 36th

  • Housing affordability — 30th

  • Crime rate per capita — 30th

And here are most- and least-stressed states:

10 most-stressed states

  • 1. Louisiana

  • 2. Mississippi

  • 3. Arkansas

  • 4. Kentucky

  • 5. West Virginia

  • 6. New Mexico

  • 7. Alabama

  • 8. Nevada

  • 9. Alaska

  • 10. Oklahoma

10 least-stressed states

  • 41. Montana

  • 42. Hawaii

  • 43. Wisconsin

  • 44. New Hampshire

  • 45. Iowa

  • 46. South Dakota

  • 47. North Dakota

  • 48. Massachusetts

  • 49. Utah

  • 50. Minnesota