Headaches lead to more than 890,000 missed days of work annually and a further one in five people in Ireland have had limited work ability due to a headache. Headache sick days cost Irish employers €99.5 million annually. This research was announced at the launch of Headache Awareness Week, which takes place from March 16 to 23, in association with Nurofen. The research also revealed that within the workplace, 24 per cent of people in Connacht said their workload is their biggest headache trigger, 22 per cent claimed that staring at the screen all day was the main cause, while dealing with stressed colleagues or clients triggered work headaches for another 17 per cent of respondents.
Some 3.2 million people in Ireland get headaches with almost one in five people experiencing a headache once a week or more. Twenty two per cent of people described their level of pain as ‘bad,’ ‘very bad,’ or at a level where they feel they ‘cannot cope.’ In Connacht, a quarter of people have had to put off daily tasks due to a headache, and nearly one in 10 of people had to spend a day in bed due to headache. Beside work-related causes, common triggers of headache in Connacht were lack of sleep (51 per cent ), dehydration (52 per cent ), and skipping meals (29 per cent ).
As part of Headache Awareness Week, Nurofen has developed a new Nurofen Headache Soother app, which is now available to download for free from the App Store and Android Market.
Speaking at the launch of Headache Awareness Week, Jean McAleenan, pharmacist, Boots, said: “First and foremost, speak to your pharmacist if you are experiencing headaches on a regular basis. Your pharmacist will help you to consider all treatment options ensuring that you get the best possible solution for your headache. You should also consider your personal headache triggers. As the workplace appears to be a major trigger for people, consider other ways of managing stress at work.”
