A Cup of Joe is Good Medicine

A new survey by retailer Dunkin’ Donuts and CareerBuilder finds nurses and doctors topped the list of professions in which workers said they got the most done after downing a cup of coffee.

A CareerBuilder news release said after nurses and doctors, the biggest coffee-drinkers were found among:

3) Hotel workers,
4) Designers/Architects,
5) Financial/Insurance sales representatives,
6) Food preparers,
7) Engineers,
8) Teachers,
9) Marketing/Public Relations professionals,
10) Scientists,
11) Machine operators, and 
12) Government workers.

In general, 32% of respondents said they need a jolt of caffeine to make it through the day, while 43% said their production lagged when they were coffee free.

Geographically, workers in the Northeast U.S. stated they are the most dependent on coffee, with 48% of people claiming they are less productive without coffee, compared to the South at 45%, West at 44% and Midwest at 34%. Meanwhile, younger workers are more dependent on a coffee fix. Forty percent of respondents ages 18 to 24 admit they can’t concentrate as well without coffee, and 43% of those ages 18 to 34 stated they have lower energy if they don’t drink coffee.

Thirty-seven percent of American workers drink two or more cups of coffee during their workday, and 75% of American workers who buy coffee during the workday only travel a quarter mile or less for their daily brew.

The survey was conducted online within the U.S. by Harris Interactive on behalf of CareerBuilder among 3,661 U.S. workers (employed full-time; not self-employed; both government and non-government) ages 18 and over between August 17 and September 2, 2010.