Half suffering winter blues - poll - News in brief

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The survey found that winter leaves people feeling demotivated, deprived of sleep and irritable.

Half (48%) of those surveyed believe they suffer from seasonal affective disorder (SAD).

Victims of the winter blues said their attitude in the workplace suffers most, with 39% of those aged 18 to 55 finding it hard to motivate themselves at work. A total of 5% more men than women said they struggled in this aspect.

As well as feeling depressed, 18% of people eat more than usual to cheer themselves up. Meanwhile, 16% find it difficult to sleep, 15% believe winter depression makes them argumentative and 5% claim a loss of libido.

Young people suffer the blues the most, with 53% of those aged 18 to 44 affected, compared with 43% of those aged 45 and above. Overall, slightly more women (52%) than men (42%) said a lack of sunlight made them depressed.

January and February are the most likely months for people to suffer from winter depression, followed by December and November.

Angela Mansi, senior lecturer in psychology at the University of Westminster, said: "Seasonal affective disorder can be extremely debilitating, and for sufferers it can affect their everyday lives a great deal.

"Lack of sunlight reduces the amount of serotonin we produce - which is a hormone that makes us feel happy. Over the winter months, this loss makes us feel sad, depressed, anxious, irritable and lack-lustre.

"One remedy is to get as much light as possible between the hours of 11am - 2pm, when the light is at its strongest in the UK. Ideally, the best option would be to take a winter holiday to somewhere with high levels of sunshine, and top up on serotonin levels."