The Christmas hangover season is beginning

- Search: Hangover cures
- Find a new job
- Singleton or party girl?

More than 200,000 British workers are hung-over on any given day, a survey suggests.

A study of employees' drinking habits also found that nearly one-in-four (22 per cent) admitted having made a mistake at work because they had been hung-over.

Pollsters YouGov found that one-in-five 18-to-25 year-old workers (19 per cent) admitted going to work hung-over at least once a month - the overall figure was 17 per cent.

Of those of all ages who owned up to going to work hung-over, 83 per cent said that it made a difference to how they performed, the study carried out for private health insurer PruHealth found.

As many as one third said that they "drift off and don't work at their usual pace" while 28 per cent agreed that they suffer from headaches and cannot concentrate.

Meanwhile 62 per cent agreed that they just "muddle through the day", the study found.

PruHealth estimates that as many as 203,331 people may be going to work hung-over on any given day.

The estimate is based on the admission of 17 per cent that they do so once a month, applied across the entire adult population of the country - and adjusted to give a daily figure.

Some employers, it seems, are more trusting than their employees' responses may merit.

Nearly half of employers (48 per cent) said that they did not think their staff would ever come in late because of a hangover.

But the survey also found that a quarter of companies now monitor whether their staff are hung-over. In Scotland the figure was 33 per cent.

PruHealth direct marketing director Nick Read said: "It's coming up to Christmas party season and more than a few of us will be indulging in some after work drinks.

"But while it is fine to enjoy a couple of glasses sensibly, the effect of a more 'boozy' attitude can have significant effects.

"Not only is binge drinking terrible for your health, a hangover also affects your performance at work - and companies are starting to catch on."

YouGov polled 1,134 employees who work eight or more hours a week and 648 employers between November 6 and November 9.