Americans Feel A Lot Of Pressure To Work When They’re Sick
If you’re not feeling great, do you call in sick to work, or just go in suffering? New research finds that a lot of people feel pressured to work when they’re sick, EVEN AFTER COVID! Plus, the average American works 10 and a half days a year – about 84 hours – while feeling under the weather.
Unfortunately this is me. I HATE calling in sick. Even if I feel terrible I will typically at least work from home, and apparently I’m not alone according to Talker.
A poll of 2-thousand U.S. adults looks at how colds and allergies affect people’s work, social lives and wallets and it reveals:
- Nearly half (47%) admit they’d rather “power through” than take a sick day.
- A third of respondents (34%) feel like they have to do that because they worry others may think they’re “dramatic” when they don’t feel well.
- Close to half (48%) have had someone make a negative comment about how often they feel unwell, while 26% say they feel like they’re the person in their family or friend group who is sick most often.
- In an average year, people miss 17 social events because they don’t feel well.
- Colds, flu or other sickness is the biggest cause (40%), with allergies in a close second (33%).
- Half of those polled (49%) have yearlong or seasonal airborne allergies and the average person with them spent $207.30 in the last year to treat allergies.
- Almost a third (31%) of all respondents experience FOMO (fear of missing out) when they don’t feel well.
- And 46% of allergy sufferers say they’d consider moving to a different city if it helped make their allergies less intense or totally go away.
Most Common Summer Illnesses and How to Avoid Them
1. Lyme Disease
Lyme Disease is a big one in the summer. Lyme disease is transmitted through tick bites, which are often living in areas with tall grass or the woods. Some common symptoms include fever, fatigue, headache and a bullseye rash. To help avoid getting tick bites, try to avoid areas with tall grass and wooded areas; wear long sleeves and pants outside; use insect repellent; and look for ticks on your skin and remove them if you find them.
Food Poisoning
Food poisoning is super prevalent in the summer. Just think about it. If you go to a picnic, chances are, that potato salad is going to be left out in the sun a long time. So, beware what you eat at outdoor events. Also, be clean with how you handle food, cook food thoroughly, wash your hands when handling food and don’t have perishable foods unrefrigerated for too long.
Dehydration
Dehydration can really be serous. It sounds like no big deal, but severe dehydration can actually lead to death. Don’t freak out too much, though. Severe dehydration usually happens if you are vomiting or have diarrhea for an extended time. In the summer months, however, being outside in the hot sun for too long and not drinking enough can lead to dehydration. Drink plenty of water. If you’re working out, sports drinks are a good choice, too.
Colds
You don’t just get a cold when it’s cold out. “Some viruses and other bacteria thrive under the extreme heat of the sun, thus increasing your risk of infection,” notes unilab.com.ph. To avoid spreading it, “Always cover your mouth when you cough and sneeze and dispose your tissues in the right receptacle.”
Flu
The flu often ticks up in the winter, but it’s around in the summer, too. Often times, if people are traveling and in close areas, the flu virus can spread. To avoid it, the CDC suggests to get vaccinated, practice good hand hygiene and avoid close contact with sick people.
Getty Images / Paul-Bradbury
Enterovirus
Enterovirus is commonly called the “summer flu.” It can cause fever, coughing, runny nose and nausea. It can also cause a rash, like with hand-foot-and-mouth disease. To prevent it, as always, good hygiene is key.
Getty Images / Dr_Microbe
More tips to avoid getting sick
“Frequent hand washing and avoiding exposure to people who are sick with fever can help prevent the spread of infection,” Dr. Michael Pichichero, a pediatrician and infectious disease researcher at the Rochester General Hospital Research Institute in New York, tells Newsinhealth.nih.gov. Dr. Pichichero adds that the best way to avoid getting sick is to block viral transmission. You can get sick by coming into direct contact with an infected person’s respiratory secretions, such as saliva or mucus, so the frequent hand washing really helps. Also, protect yourself from the sun and beware of picnics where food that’s left out in the sun can go bad.
