Britons ‘ignoring colds and treatments’

A pharmacy chain has warned that many Britons are not adequately treating their colds but instead just putting up with being sick.

Boots has conducted a survey which reveals 47 per cent of workers would prefer their cold-ridden colleagues to stay at home rather than spreading the infection but 56 per cent refuse to take off work to recover themselves.

It revealed that one-in-five sufferers fail to treat their symptoms, while half of those questioned admit they just use whatever products they find in their medicine cabinet.

Angela Chalmers, a Boots pharmacist, said: “We recommend that people visit their local pharmacist who can assess their symptoms on an individual basis and recommend the correct treatments, which may or may not include some time off work.”

Recently, the Department of Health launched a “Catch it, Bin it, Kill it” campaign, aimed at encouraging the public to practise correct respiratory and hand hygiene to reduce the spread of cold and flu germs this winter.