Hands up how many people have a friend who refuses to make a decision? Whether they're unable to decide where to meet for a drink or can't choose which salad they want for lunch, it can quickly get irritating. But now it's been suggested it could also be damaging to their health, with researchers claiming people who procrastinate could be more likely to have heart disease.

It's thought that putting off decisions means that when people do have to go one way or another they feel incredibly stressed, putting their heart under a lot more pressure than those who make a quick choice.

The Canadian study involved 980 people, who were put into groups depending on whether they had heart disease and hypertension or not. The first set agreed with sentiments about putting things off and wasting time rather than hitting deadlines. Although these techniques were supposed to help reduce anxiety, it was found they put stress on the heart.

The research was conducted by people at Bishop’s University in Quebec, who hope it will encourage a change in the way heart issues are treated. They believe people who procrastinate need to be taught why this could be adversely affecting their help and encouraged not to avoid choosing between one thing and another.

On top of this, it was suggested that actually having these heart issues could be one of the reasons why people delay decisions because it means they don't have to face up to what is wrong with them.

But the news that people put off what needs to be done is probably not anything new. In 2012 salary.com found that as many as 64 per cent of employees spent time surfing the web when they should be working, with 21 per cent admitting the act took up five hours of their work time a week.

It's easy to put off something you don't find that interesting, but we've all felt that sense of impending doom when you realise you actually do need to crack on with that report for your boss.

It won't be the most popular advice but it really is better to get things done in a timely way; you'll spend less time worrying and your work will likely be better. If you really can't kick yourself into action try an awards system - whether it's a new dress, a meal out or a holiday (for a really big report!) it's amazing what you can get done when incentives are dangled in front of you.

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