While there’s no doubt Christmas is a time for celebration and joy, it can also be a great source of stress.
Now, a new study shows the festive grocery shop – an inevitable task for any festive household – is as stressful as sitting an exam or having a job interview.
Scientists at Ocado teamed up with Charles Spence, professor of experimental psychology at Oxford University, to assess customers during the big Christmas grocery shop.
They fitted 20 volunteers with electrical monitors to detect increases in heart rates – a classic sign of stress – while they pushed their trolley.
Heart rates spiked by 44 per cent on average, reaching 115 beats per minute (bpm) when food shopping, they found.
This is the same level of stress as sitting an exam (up to 115 beats per minute) or having a job interview (up to 115 bpm).
It’s also nearly as stressful as watching a horror film (110 bpm).
‘Heart rates increase when we encounter stress, as adrenaline pumps through the body – and there’s nothing like the chaos of Christmas shopping to get it going,’ said Professor Spence.
A new study shows the festive grocery shop – an inevitable task for any festive household – is as stressful as sitting an exam or having a job interview (file photo)
Heart rates spiked by 44 per cent on average, reaching 115 beats per minute (bpm) when food shopping
In contrast, heart rates of online shoppers’ peaked at 82bpm, which was 29 per cent lower than the in-store experience.
This is slightly lower than practicing yoga (80bpm) and stroking a cat (77bpm).
‘Our experiment showed that in-store shopping during the festive season can send heart rates and stress levels soaring,’ added Professor Spence.
According to Ocado, their study shows that online shop is a ‘much calmer alternative’ at Christmas, which it ultimately hopes will direct more people towards its website.
However, other research has shown that traditional brick-and-mortar shopping does have its advantages over online shopping.
A 2014 study found shopping in person can ease sadness give people a sense of control, which is important to prevent impulsive purchase decisions.
And as the Covid pandemic showed, spending more time away from screens in favour of in-person connections has been linked with better mental health.
Ocado also conducted a poll of 2,000 adults to reveal more about our attitude towards the big Christmas grocery shop.
Scientists fitted 20 volunteers with heart monitors (pictured) to detect increases in their heart rates – a classic sign of stress
In all, 63 per cent of people said the most stressful part of the shop is having to deal with long queues, while 60 per cent said it was the big crowds and 39 per cent empty shelves.
Forgetting something on your food shop (38 per cent) and battling with other shoppers for a parking space (37 per cent) also causes stress to rise above normal.
Other worry-inducing tasks include fretting about staying within budget (32 per cent) and carrying heavy bags (29 per cent).
Overall, 47 per cent said the in-person supermarket food shop over Christmas is a stressful experience, while 18 per cent said they would even prefer to clean their the bathroom.
“As further consumer research highlighted key triggers like long queues and crowded aisles, it’s no surprise that so many Brits would rather scrub their bathroom than brave the supermarket,’ added Professor Spence.
Another factor, named by 21 per cent as the most stressful thing about the festive grocery shop, is the loud Christmas music.
It follows a study last year by the University of Bath that found shoppers spend more money when there’s music playing – at least from Monday to Thursday.
That’s because weekday shoppers tend to be mentally tired from the working week, and music lifts their mood, making them spend more, the experts said.
During the Christmas period, shops and businesses tend to play a relatively small sample of festive songs on repeat.
A 2017 study found that holiday music on constant replay can be mentally draining for employees working in shops.
About 61 per cent of people experience stress during the Christmas season, according to the American Psychiatric Association.
Sources of festive stress include shopping, cooking, spending money and feeling the need to please people – for example friends and in-laws.
