WASHINGTON – The stress from deepening debt is becoming a major pain in the neck — and the back and the head and the stomach — for millions of Americans.

When people are dealing with mountains of debt, they’re much more likely to report health problems, too, according to an Associated Press-AOL Health poll. And not just little stuff; this meansulcers, severe depression, even heart attacks.

pending less during the holiday season does not mean you will have less fun. Make sure you plan an affordable holiday.

Create a holiday budget. A spending plan is a good start for a cheaper holiday season. Don’t forget to include the cost of decorations, food and gifts into your budget.

Make a gift list and don’t go over your spending limit. Get your gift ideas down on paper before heading out to the shop…

It’s the holiday season, the biggest shopping season of the whole year. It’s this time that many Americans end up with thousands of dollars in credit card debt they cant afford to pay back. Here are some reasons to avoid using your credit card while shopping for the holidays.

If you have a debt on your credit card now, you will only be adding to it. You will spend more money with a credit card because there is no physical sign telling you to stop spending. Try to avoid using your credit card and use some cash you have put aside for holiday shopping. You will pay more with a credit card as well because you pay interest on balance…

Walter Cavanagh has 1,497 valid credit cards — all of which amount to a $1.7 million line of credit.

Currently, he holds the record for the most credit cards and for the world’s longest wallet, which stretches 250 feet, weighs about 38 pounds and can hold 800 cards. But he keeps most of them in bank safe-deposit boxes.

The “Guinness Book of World Records” gave him the title “Mr. Plastic Fantastic,” and he has been in the book every year since 1971.

With the holidays just around the corner, many credit card rules and normal spending habits are forgotten. Many charge up credit card balances that can take months and even years to pay back. Here are ten mistakes that are commonly made during the holiday season.

By turning your thermostat down three degrees, you can save around 3% on your heating bills. Make sure it is off when you are at work and turn it down even lower when you are sleeping to save even more money. Shut the doors to any rooms that aren’t being used to conserve energy. Weatherstripping doors and windows can amount to using less heat. An insulated attic can also reduce the cost of your heating bills. The refrigerator, hot water heater and the heating system are three of the biggest energy consumers in your home. To improve the efficiency of your appliances, Make sure you give your …

Did you know that when you buy a new car, the value of the car immediately depreciates when you get it home? By buying a car that is one year old, you will be paying close to what the car is actually worth. Most cars are worth half their value within a two year period. Buying a car with a high residual value may allow you to sell or trade it in for …

People who know exactly how much they spend each month on groceries are twenty times less likely to be deep in debt than those who don’t know how much they have spent. When we include dining out, vending machines and fast food into the list of food related purchases, we realize how much we are spending. Prepackaged and ready to eat meals also end up costing a lot of money. Eating is a necessity but there are many ways to noticeably reduce your food budget.

Americans have a long, sordid history with borrowed money. In Collateral Damaged: The Marketing of Consumer Debt to America, Charles Geisst, a professor of finance at Manhattan College, takes us through the centuries to explain how we wound up at our most recent — and spectacular — credit bubble. TIME’s Barbara Kiviat spoke with him

You write that one of the major myths about American society is that we

Consumers are simply overwhelmed by the financial straits in which many find themselves in and cannot make an informed decision. Many of you have had this experience. Panic begins to set in and you say, “Help I’m in debt. What can I do?” This is when you realize that you owe too much money to too many people and you might not be able …

Americans charged $51 billion worth of fast food last year

about 1/3 of the people filing for bankruptcy owe an entire year’s salary on their credit cards.

It took Montreal 30 years to pay off its Olympic debt of $2 billion, held in 1976!

At least one in 10 consumers has more than 10 credit cards in their wallets. That is equal to 304 tons of plastic or 61 Elephants!

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