Men moan more than women when they are sick, according to new research.
Experts discovered men are more likely to exaggerate illnesses to try and gain maximum sympathy when laid low by a bug or virus.
It also emerged that, while women are likely to complain about minor ailments on a daily basis, men feel more sorry for themselves when they are actually ill.
Men also suffer from less illnesses – five bouts a year compared to seven for women.
The Engage Mutual study of 3,000 people also revealed one in two men exaggerate their symptoms of illness – describing a common cold as ‘flu’ and headaches as a migraine.
Karl Elliott of Engage Mutual, said: ”Men have had a bad press concerning their tendencies towards ‘man flu’, but our findings support the belief that men do moan more and are more likely to exaggerate their symptoms.
”They may have fewer bouts of genuine sickness a year, five compared to the seven suffered by women, but when ill, their attention seeking behaviour makes sure their partner knows about it.
”But even though men look for maximum sympathy, they tend to struggle on, being less likely to take time off work for an illness.
”Minor ailments aside, it is important for men to recognise and act on any genuine health concerns.
”Whether taking professional advice, or seeking suitable remedies and treatments to aid recovery, it is important to address any issues in order to maintain good levels of health.”
The study also found more than 57 per cent of men become attention seeking when ill, with 65 per cent constantly moaning and groaning.
When it comes to taking time off work, men are real martyrs, with 76 per cent choosing to take their symptoms to work, rather than recover at home.
Despite 34 per cent of men’s partners rarely believing they are sick, 62 per cent can still be relied upon to serve up some sympathy.
Six in ten women said they didn’t like seeing their partner ill while 49 per cent said they did their best to make them comfortable.
Two thirds of partners regularly go to the chemist whenever their man is ill, 46 per cent run them a bath and 27 per cent provide breakfast in bed.
On the other side of the gender coin, the survey suggests women tend to be more vocal about their aches and pains on a daily basis.
According to their partners, 45 per cent of women have a low pain threshold, and 36 per cent frequently get ‘woman flu’.
Karl Elliott added: ”Women score higher than men on being prepared to dole out the sympathy for an attention seeking partner, regardless of whether they believe they are genuinely ill, or not.
”But when it comes to doing the little things that make a partner more comfortable when they are ill, men and women seem to be more evenly matched.”
