A new Gallup poll has attempted to explain how student loan debt is crippling recent college graduates, as past reports have indicated they are falling behind.

According to the Huffington Post, the new project was a collaboration with Purdue University and the Lumina Foundation. It looked at aspects beyond just the financial implications of student loans and gauged whether a person was "thriving," "suffering" or "struggling."

The five areas of the Gallup-Healthways Well-Being Index are purpose, social, financial, community and physical. The survey asked Americans that graduated between 1990 and 2014 to rate their agreement with various statements about well being using a five-point scale.

Unsurprisingly, graduates with more student loan debt scored lower in the financial well-being section than those with little or none at all. The survey also reveled that more student loan debt took a toll on the four other areas of well being.

For example, 49 percent of college graduates with no student loan debt were found to be thriving in the purpose area versus 40 percent of the counterparts with more $50,000 of debt. Across the board, the percentage of students who were thriving in a given area dropped when tacking on more debt.

"Relatively recent college graduates - those who earned their degree from 2000 to 2014 - who have more than $50,000 in student debt are significantly less likely to be thriving financially and physically than their counterparts without loans," Gallup said in a statement. "They are also less likely to have a strong sense of purpose and to be thriving in their community well-being. Notably, for 2000-2014 graduates, the most indebted degree holders are less likely to be thriving in social well-being, something that is not true of the larger sample."

The HP previously reported that student loan debt is getting in the way of major life decisions. For example, the added financial woes can get in the way of buying a home, getting married and starting a family. Other, more minor life decisions can include financing a new car and taking risks in the job market.

Balking at these kinds of decisions can easily have an adverse effect on the economy.

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