The Marshall Plan was a rational effort by the United States aimed at reducing the hunger, homelessness, sickness, unemployment, and political restlessness of the 270 million people in sixteen nations in West Europe, as well as avoiding communism. The Marshall Plan significantly magnified their own efforts and reduced the suffering and time West Europe took to recover from the war, but mostly they Americans were afraid of the spread of communism in Europe. The Marshall Plan nations were assisted greatly in their economic recovery. From 1948 through 1952 European economies grew at an unprecedented rate.