Snackers are increasing their risk of heart disease by grazing on high-fat foods, a report says today.

The study argues that changes in eating patterns as well as the unhealthy choices people make to fill the gap that was once occupied by a midday meal are contributing to high cholesterol levels.

Male manual workers are in more danger than others; more than a quarter of them say healthier options are too expensive, finds the report, Working Lunches, published by Developing Patient Partnerships, a health education charity. Almost two-thirds in this group have cholesterol above recommended levels.

High levels of cholesterol form the biggest single risk factor for heart disease. One in eight Britons has heart disease and high cholesterol.

An ICM telephone poll of 2,000 adults suggests a quarter are missing lunch at work, while nearly one in three factory workers and labourers do not eat a midday meal.

Nine in 10 people surveyed admitted that they took snacks between meals.

The report recommends that people should go to work with at least two pieces of fruit, request fruit instead of biscuits at meetings and limit snacks to fruit or bread-based products.