East Kilbride ranked fifth most stressed area of the UK

An older man is holding his face in his hands.
A study assessed the number of monthly Google searches for terms related to stress and anxiety across cities and towns in the UK -Credit:Getty


New research has named East Kilbride as the fifth worst area in the UK for stressed-out residents.

Using Google Keyword Planner, the study, conducted by CBD retailers CBD Oil King, assessed the number of monthly Google searches for 233 search terms related to stress and anxiety across cities and towns in the UK.

The total monthly amount was then scaled against the population of each city to give a total number of searches per 100,000 residents.

Scotland’s fifth-largest locality by population, East Kilbride ranked highly in fifth place, having 1,752 monthly searches per 100,000 residents - that's around 58 searches a day related to stress.

According to the latest data from the Scottish government, over a quarter (28.8 per cent) of adults suffer from long-term limiting physical or mental health conditions in the region.

The study revealed that Preston is the most stressed area of the UK, citing 2,006 monthly searches per 100,000 people in the city for search terms relating to stress. Coming in second, was Blackburn with 1,979 searches; Liverpool was next on the list, coming in third with a rate of 1,968 searches; and fourth most stressed was Burnley with 1,864 stress and anxiety-related searches.

The most stressed UK cities, ranked

Rank

Location

Searches per 100,000

1

Preston

2,006

2

Blackburn

1,979

3

Liverpool

1,968

4

Burnley

1,864

5

East Kilbride

1,752

6

Bristol

1,668

7

Manchester

1,665

8

Newcastle

1,576

9

Reading

1,535

10

Portsmouth

1,493

Commenting on the findings, Dr Mansoor Siddique, Director of CBD Oil King, said: “Stress can be caused by a multitude of factors including work, unemployment, disability, mental health issues, crime rates, poverty and so on.

“It is shocking to note that the Mental Health Foundation’s most recent study found that 74 per cent of Brits have felt an overwhelming amount of stress across the previous year, with a further third saying they had experienced suicidal thoughts because of it. We must do more to help those around us in such situations and we can also help ourselves by having healthy coping mechanisms ahead of time that we can put to use.

“Various factors, whether socioeconomic or genetic, influence individuals' ability to cope with stress and anxiety and it is key people have support systems in place that can help them manage any worries they may be having. This is why it is imperative for local authorities, employers, and society as a whole to create places where free and open discussion on mental health takes place. Doing so will hopefully decrease the burden many feel weighed down by.”

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