Groggy Gremlins suffering at work

3:17pm Wednesday 21st November 2007

NEW research has shown that more than a third of employees (37%) in Taunton admit to trying to look busy when full of cold at work, but are not really getting any work done.

A study by Lemsip Max Day & Night Cold & Flu Relief Capsules states that almost one in six (15%) spend at least the first two hours of the working day doing very little, and more than one in 10 (13%) take an extra half hour checking emails.

Hourly trips to the canteen to make cups of tea or coffee is a necessary pick me up for one in five workers, and of those that do make an attempt to work, 36% find they can't concentrate on the job in hand.

Popular desk dozer' pastimes include day-dreaming (40%), surfing the internet to try and get re-focused' and 7% find themselves taking refuge in the toilets for a quarter of an hour at a time.

Lemsip brand manager Vishal Kalia said: "You've got to admire people who struggle into work when they've got a cold - it can be really rough.

"And as our research shows, trying to be alert and fully functioning can be particularly hard if you've not managed to get a good night's sleep thanks to your symptoms."

Lemsip have also produced a top ten of Groggy Gremlins' for bed-headed cold and flu sufferers:

1. Forgetfulness when preparing breakfast - going to the fridge and struggling to remember why

2. Being late for work

3. Forgetting a bag, purse or wallet

4. Being locked out of the house after forgetting keys

5. Wearing underwear inside out

6. Wearing odd shoes or socks

7. Forgetting to wear normal jewellery

8. Getting the kids to school late

9. Pouring fruit juice in tea or coffee, or on cereal by mistake

10. Setting a new trend and arriving at work in slippers