This column, by David Brooks, tackles an obvious and depressing problem in our society today:

The United States has been an affluent nation since its founding. But the country was, by and large, not corrupted by wealth. For centuries, it remained industrious, ambitious and frugal.

Over the past 30 years, much of that has been shredded. The social norms and institutions that encouraged frugality and spending what you earn have been undermined. The institutions that encourage debt and living for the moment have been strengthened. The country’s moral guardians are forever looking for decadence out of Hollywood and reality TV. But the most rampant decadence today is financial decadence, the trampling of decent norms about how to use and harness money.

Brooks goes on to point the finger at some flagrant sources of fiscal excess: payday lenders who charge usorious interest rates; state-run lotteries that function, as Garrison Keillor once said, "as a tax on people who aren't good at math"; college students who carry an average of four credit cards by the time they graduate.

Some of the numbers are certainly shocking (a family that makes less than $13,000 spends about 9 percent of its income on lottery tickets, on average), but to Brooks' credit he avoids the "stupid poor people" line of attack. Even smart people are actively encouraged to do stupid things with their money, like refinance mortgages to take equity out of their homes, make needlessly risky investments, or just buy expensive things they don't really need.

Case in point:

I used to get a subscription to Smart Money magazine through one of my employers. The magazine ran a story one month on "must-have" gear for new parents. I'd written several articles about baby gear, and I knew from experience what you do and don't need, and how to shop for the things you really must have.

So I was stunned to see the magazine's complete disconnect from my own reality. I'm working off deep memory, but as I recall, the magazine showed the most expensive options for strollers and things new families actually should have, along with pricey versions of things no one really needs.

You have to hope that people reading a magazine with the words "smart" and "money" in the title wouldn't use a magazine article as a shopping list. But I remember being surprised at the disservice to readers. For starters, virtually everything a new parent needs can be picked up in great condition in second-hand stores for a fraction of the listed retail price. (Anything you buy new is going to look second-hand within a week anyway, so why pay full price for seven days of shininess?)  

But there's more to the debt crisis than stupidity, usury, and profligacy. Even people who play by the rules get sucked up in moutains of debt. (Mike Dixon, a friend and classmate from grad school, wrote here about the toll of student loans on teachers like him.)

Which brings me to the big question of the day: Does financial stress interfere with your physical health and well-being? According to this report, the answer is yes:

Among the people reporting high debt stress in the new poll:

* 27 percent had ulcers or digestive tract problems, compared with 8 percent of those with low levels of debt stress.

* 44 percent had migraines or other headaches, compared with 15 percent.

* 29 percent suffered severe anxiety, compared with 4 percent.

* 23 percent had severe depression, compared with 4 percent.

* 6 percent reported heart attacks, double the rate for those with low debt stress.

* More than half, 51 percent, had muscle tension, including pain in the lower back. That compared with 31 percent of those with low levels of debt stress.

I don't have time this morning to look under the hood and make a call about the poll's methodology. (The news report says it was a nationwide telephone survey of 1,002 adults, with a margin of error of 3.1 percent in either direction.) But I will say that it rings true in my experience. Back in my fiscally irresponsible youth, I had more time and energy to train, but ended up with more injuries, particularly in my back and shoulders.

My own ignorance about training was probably the biggest culprit, but I can't rule out the stress of living paycheck to paycheck and being one accident away from financial calamity for years on end.

How about you? Has your physical health improved with financial success? Has your health suffered when you've been under financial stress?