Hawaii is least stressed state with highest enjoyment levels

(HealthDay)—Hawaii remains the least stressed state, and also reports the highest level of enjoyment, according to a report from Gallup-Healthways.

As part of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index, researchers collected state-level data during more than 350,000 daily telephone interviews conducted among U.S. adults living in all 50 states and the District of Columbia from January to December 2012.

The researchers found that, similar to previous years, in 2012, 40.6 percent of Americans reported feeling stressed "yesterday." Stress levels were unchanged for all states in 2012 versus 2011. The five least stressed states were Hawaii (32.1 percent), Louisiana (37.6 percent), Mississippi (37.9 percent), Iowa (38.1 percent), and Wyoming (38.6 percent), while the five most stressed states were West Virginia (47.1 percent), Rhode Island (46.3 percent), Kentucky (44.8 percent), Utah (44.6 percent), and Massachusetts (43.4 percent). Two of the states with the lowest stress levels also reported the highest level of enjoyment (Hawaii, with 89.7 percent, and Wyoming, with 88.8 percent).

"For the past five years, Hawaii has consistently ranked as the least stressed state, while West Virginia, Kentucky, and Utah have been among the most stressed states," according to the report. "While the relationship between stress and enjoyment is not clear, states with the highest stress levels tend to report less daily enjoyment."