According to a new Australian study, women are biggest complainers than men, when it comes to colds and flu. Earlier it was believed that man flu sufferers exaggerated their symptoms to get more attention and sympathy from their partner. But the new study shows that most of the women admitted exaggerating symptoms to gain attention or to get a day off work. On the other hand, men are less likely to take a day off from work than women.  

Gladeana McMahon, a consultant psychotherapist and Fellow of the British Association for Counseling and Psychotherapy, thinks that women used illness as an excuse for attention. She said: “Women tend to talk more about their feelings generally, but men it seems appear to vocalize more when they're sick - that's where the myth around man flu originated. So it's surprising that these results show women to be the biggest complainers when it comes to colds and flu.”  

The study was conducted on 2,300 adults by Actimel and it revealed that 91% women claim to feel ‘bad or very bad’ as compared to only 23% men, when they have a cold. Women admitted that they feel over-emotional and weak when suffering from cold. They took nearly 8 to 10 days to recover to full health; whereas men were ready for work after just 2 to 3 days.   

Gladeana McMahon also states, “Maybe it is more a case of needing more recognition for what they do and if they can't get that on a day-to-day basis, then looking for a bit of sympathy when they're sick is a way of making up for this.”