How stressful is slow rural broadband?

These tasks range from working at home, streaming films, chatting on Skype or making purchases.

One in seven rural residents believe their poor broadband induces the same level of stress as being on a long-haul flight next to screaming children.

Growing issue

In order to rectify the growing issue of slow broadband in the country, communication giants, Sky, TalkTalk, Vodaphone and the Federation of Communication Services have collaborated to create the ’Fix Britain’s Internet’ campaign.

With both Ofcom, the telecoms regulator, and MPs recognising the need to radically overhaul the underlying infrastructure that powers the nations broadband, members of the public are now able to have their say on the future of internet access across the UK.

Commenting on the research, neuropsychologist Dr David Lewis said the ’tortoise-like’ speed of poor broadband could potentially have adverse physical and mental effects.

He said: "The tortoise-like speed of a poor broadband connection doesn’t just waste our time, it can also be detrimental to our physical and mental health.

Research

"My own lab’s scientific research has proved that when internet connections slow to a crawl in the middle of completing an online task, we experience significant increases in blood pressure and heart rate, impaired reasoning and decision-making, growing anxiety, intense frustration and even incidents of ‘computer rage’."

• To have your say on the issues affecting broadband in your rural area, click here to visit the Fix Britain’s Internet campaign.