Majority of pain-suffering Canadians admit they suffer from presenteeism - showing up to work, but not being productive

Sleep loss due to pain a leading cause, but Canadians can rest easy - there are solutions available

TORONTO, March 7, 2012 /CNW/ - We've all been there - muddling through that day when coffee just won't cut it. When you stare blankly at the computer screen zoning in and out, not really accomplishing anything (other than keeping those eyelids from shutting) until 5 o'clock rolls around and you go home and crash.

That familiar feeling is called presenteeism, and it has many causes, but experts believe a poor night's sleep due to pain may be contributing to this phenomenon. In fact, according to the Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit conducted by Leger Marketing, a whopping 84 per cent of Canadians who lose sleep due to aches and pains say a poor night's sleep due to pain makes them less productive / more easily distracted the next day.¹

"The sleep-deprived among us are lousy judges of their own sleep needs. And they may not even realize the root cause of their sleep loss," says Dr. Adam Moscovitch, Sleep Medicine Specialist. "It's not just those doing the nine-to-five jobs who are affected. Stay at home moms, shift workers and students often experience sleep loss due to pain and find themselves less present the next day in all areas of their lives."

Awake and aware, but are you really "there"?
Not surprisingly, 89 per cent of Canadians who lose sleep due to aches and pains say they feel frustrated when their aches and pains keep them up at night.² The survey also reveals that more than half (52 per cent) say they can't concentrate as well,³ and nearly half (48 per cent) admit to being less patient the next day.⁴

Dr. Moscovitch says that recognizing the pattern of sleep loss due to pain is a step in the right direction. "Don't just dream about the restful night's sleep you can have and how much more focused and productive you could be - take action and break the pain and sleeplessness cycle.  There are several solutions available to help cope with the nightmare of sleep loss due to pain."

One of the steps Dr. Moscovitch recommends is to start by taking the Canadian Tiredness Test to see how you measure up on the alertness scale.  By visiting PainFreeSleep.ca you can learn more about sleep loss due to pain, take the Tiredness Test and find out about solutions to help you get back on track when you hit the sack.

More sleepy stats from the Advil Nighttime Take Action Audit
Four in five Canadians who lose sleep due to aches and pains (81 per cent) admit when they have a poor night's sleep due to pain they don't feel like themselves the next day.⁵ A further 67 per cent agree even the smallest tasks seem daunting the next day.⁶ More than half of Canadians who lose sleep due to aches and pains (56 per cent) say they get anxious thinking about the bad night sleep they are going to have when they are suffering from aches and pains.⁷ What's more, according to experts, the more tired we become, the less able we are to recognize our impairment due to sleep loss.

About pain and sleeplessness
Sleep is when the body heals and repairs itself, so it's vital to get a good, full night's sleep, otherwise a vicious cycle can begin. If you experience poor sleep due to pain one night, you will also experience more pain, and you are likely to experience more problems the next night and so on. It gets worse and worse every night.⁸ On average, medical professionals recommend getting at least six hours of quality sleep per night.⁹ Sleep affects how you feel, look and perform on a daily basis, and can have a major impact on your overall quality of life.¹⁰  Getting appropriate sleep can help you wake up feeling refreshed from a good night's sleep and alert for whatever comes your way that day.

About Advil Nighttime
Advil Nighttime is a non-prescription pain reliever containing ibuprofen and diphenhydramine, recently available in Canada.¹¹ The ibuprofen relieves pain while the diphenhydramine gently enables sleep.¹² The combination of these ingredients provides fast pain relief and uninterrupted sleep to help patients wake up feeling refreshed from a good night's sleep.¹³ For more information visit AdvilNighttime.ca.

About the audit
The audit was completed online from January 9^th to January 11^th, 2012 using Leger Marketing's online panel, LegerWeb, with a sample of 812 Canadians that lose sleep due to aches and pains. A probability sample of the same size would yield a margin of error of ±3.4%, 19 times out of 20.

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¹ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 11
² 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 17
³ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 11
⁴ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 12
⁵ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 27
⁶ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 29
⁷ 2012 Advil^® Nighttime Take Action Audit, p. 19
⁸ National Sleep Foundation - Information on Sleep Health and Safety. Available at: http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/ask-the-expert/pain-and-sleep
⁹ Better Sleep Council Canada - In the Bedroom. Available at: http://www.bettersleep.ca/
¹⁰ National Sleep Foundation - What happens when you sleep?  Available at: http://www.sleepfoundation.org/article/how-sleep-works/what-happens-when-you-sleep
¹¹ Advil^® Nighttime Product Monograph p. 3
¹² Advil^® Nighttime Physician Detail Aid
¹³ Advil^® Nighttime Physician Detail Aid

Video with caption: "Video: Video featuring Dr. Adam Moscovitch, Sleep Medicine Specialist, talking about presenteeism, sleep loss and sleep tips. Video also features pain sufferer Liza, a fulltime teacher and mother.". Video available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/cgi-bin/playback.cgi?file=20120307_C2327_VIDEO_EN_10885.mp4&posterurl=http://photos.newswire.ca/images/20120307_C2327_PHOTO_EN_10885.jpg&clientName=Pfizer%20Consumer%20Healthcare&caption=Video%3A%20Video%20featuring%20Dr%2E%20Adam%20Moscovitch%2C%20Sleep%20Medicine%20Specialist%2C%20talking%20about%20presenteeism%2C%20sleep%20loss%20and%20sleep%20tips%2E%20%20Video%20also%20features%20pain%20sufferer%20Liza%2C%20a%20fulltime%20teacher%20and%20mother%2E&title=Pain%2Dridden%20sleepless%20nights%20leading%20to%20presenteeism&headline=Majority%20of%20pain%2Dsuffering%20Canadians%20admit%20they%20suffer%20from%20presenteeism%20%2D%20showing%20up%20to%20work%2C%20but%20not%20being%20productive

Image with caption: "Feeling the effects of presenteeism (CNW Group/Pfizer Consumer Healthcare)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120307_C2327_PHOTO_EN_10872.jpg

Image with caption: "Dr. Moscovitch, Sleep Medicine Specialist, working at his sleep clinic (CNW Group/Pfizer Consumer Healthcare)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120307_C2327_PHOTO_EN_10873.jpg

Image with caption: "Liza, pain sufferer, getting a good night's sleep (CNW Group/Pfizer Consumer Healthcare)". Image available at: http://photos.newswire.ca/images/download/20120307_C2327_PHOTO_EN_10874.jpg

Audio with caption: "Audio: Radio segment featuring Dr. Adam Moscovitch talking about presenteeism". Audio available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2012/03/07/20120307_C2327_AUDIO_EN_10886.mp3

Audio with caption: "Audio: Radio segment featuring Dr. Adam Moscovitch talking about Canadians and sleep loss". Audio available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2012/03/07/20120307_C2327_AUDIO_EN_10887.mp3

PDF with caption: "Dr. Moscovitch Bio". PDF available at: http://stream1.newswire.ca/media/2012/03/07/20120307_C2327_DOC_EN_10897.pdf

Jaclyn Crawford 
Environics Communications
[email protected]
416-969-2728