Cliff Hanging Is Bad for Joints

A lot of stuff I have read on writing fiction stresses the need to keep the reader in suspense; one book I read went so far as to say that every chapter should end with a cliff hanger. Talk about a stressful read. But seriously, is there that much need to keep readers in that much suspense? Don't get me wrong, cliff hangers have their place, but to have a calamity befall every five pages does seem a bit overdone.
In my experience, most books that are written this way are lacking in quality and make up for lack of substance with an abundance of suspense. This tendency is seen with glaring clearness in books that form a series. An author addicted to tension and cliff hangers tends to have one unresolved tragedy every chapter, and ends the book with the most colossal and demanding cliff hanger of the book...so you will come back and buy his next novel. In the Jane Austen novels, every chapter does not end with one of her characters in an unresolved situation that threatens dire consequences, the main theme of the books carries you along, it is concern with the over all point of the plot that holds your interest, even if you have read the book or know the story by heart. If you look at the Harry Potter books (I'm not promoting J.K. Rowling's books here or trying to start a big discussion about them...maybe in another post. I am just trying to make a point about the way they are plotted.) the problem of the entire series is Voldemort and how to get rid of him. Each book ended with another of Voldemort's plots foiled or stalled (at increased cost to Harry as the series progressed) and most of the threads tied up. We did not put the book down wondering if Harry or a close friend was going to die within the next five minutes, though we knew that danger was there and the main problem was unresolved, but there was no pressing problem that demanded immediate attention.
So for those of you who are writers: don't leave us hanging over cliffs all the time...It is very discomfiting.