Quarter of workers eat breakfast at their desks

Jan 20 2006 by Nic Paton Print This Article

First the leisurely lunch gave way to a hurried sandwich at your desk, now more than a quarter of British workers claim to be so short of time that they are resorting to eating breakfast at their desks too.

A survey of more than 2,000 workers for budget hotel chain Travelodge found that British workers eat an average of 161 breakfasts every year at the office.

This is the equivalent of more than two-thirds of weekday breakfasts consumed by adults during their working lives.

UK workers work their way through more than a billion bowls of cereal, bagels and pieces of toast in front of their PCs every year, said Travelodge.

The most common reasons given for this were wanting to catch up on sleep, spending time on chores and getting ready, rushing to get into work extra early and workers having their hands full with children.

The study also found that workaholic adults will eat nearly half their weekday meals at their desks, making Britons more likely to eat with work colleagues than with friends or family during the week.

Christine Webber, psychotherapist and life coach, said: "It used to be lunch at your desk that was the norm, but the sad fact is that more Britons are now also eating breakfast at their desks because they don't have time at home in the mornings can only lead to more stress in the workplace.

"Skipping breakfast is crazy as it leaves you feeling lousy and irritable mid-morning. It doesn't even save you calories as sugary snacks are a favourite breakfast replacement.

"All a chocolate bar will do is bring on a quick burst of energy, compared to the slow-release energy you'll gain from a bowl of porridge, for example," she added.

The professions most likely to eat their meals every day at work were solicitors (44.4 per cent), IT managers (21.5 per cent), project managers (19.8 per cent), call centre staff (19.4 per cent) and journalists (17.6 per cent), said Travelodge.