Singapore has the most number of people suffering from sore throats, according to a global online health survey of 47 countries.

The survey, conducted by The Nielsen Company and released yesterday, found that about four in 10 Singaporeans suffer from either sore throat or the flu, ranking them first and second respectively worldwide.

Recurring ailments here are headaches, flu and sore throat, in that order. Only one in 10 people claims to be in the pink of health.

Said the medical director of KCS Medical Centre, Dr Erwin Kay: 'Most Singaporeans work in an air-conditioned environment where the air is poorly circulated, so infections like flu and sore throat become easily contagious.'

Conducted from April 16 to May 1, the poll drew 500 responses from Singaporeans and about 26,500 replies globally.

Doctors The Straits Times spoke to were surprised at the findings and said patients usually visit them for a combination of symptoms, rather than sore throat alone.

'April and May is the flu season in Singapore which could explain why there might have been a spike in the number of people with sore throat,' said Dr Wilson Wong, consultant family physician and medical director at Raffles Medical Clinics.

The survey also ranked Singapore second in the world, after Hong Kong, for the most people knocking on doctors' doors whenever they experience any health discomfort. Nearly half choose to see a doctor while about one in 10 would rather let nature take its course.

As for medication, most Singaporeans favour self-medication, with more than four in five claiming to take a product they always use, rather than rely on information sources such as pharmacists, friends and advertising.