Santas get sneezed upon up to ten times a day, fend off children pulling their beards and mop up after children who frequently wet their laps, according to the survey of hundreds of men who work as seasonal Santa Claus characters.

A third of all Santas reported having been wet on by a child, the survey said.

More than 60 percent of Santas said they were sneezed or coughed upon up to 10 times each day, and three-quarters said they have up to 10 children cry while sitting on their laps every day, it said.

Nearly 90 percent of Santas said children pull their beard every day to see if it's real, and nearly half said children try to pull their glasses off every day as well, it said.

Santas can suffer back strain from lifting children, exposure to contagious illnesses and overheating in their heavy Santa suits, said Timothy Connaghan, head of the Santa association.

RSI is no small matter. It accounts for 34% of all lost-workday injury and illness -- and costs almost $20 billion annually, according to the Bureau of Labor Statistics. The National Academy of Sciences has concluded that an estimated $50 billion is lost by businesses every year from sick leave, decreased productivity and medical costs linked to repetitive stress disorders. The Academy has published two reports since 1998 which directly link repetitive motion to workplace injury.

The damage sustained from RSI is due to structural changes in the muscle fiber as well as due to decreased blood flow. Nerves can also be involved. The immobile tissue and surrounding inflammation compress the nerve which can cause numbness or tingling and eventually weakness if the nerve is damaged severely.

Breaks should be taken every 30-45 minutes for at least 5 minutes. If you need assistance there are free downloadable timers that will help remind you to do so.

Stretch your arms, hands, neck, and back during breaks. This yoga site demonstrates some exercises. Other sites are listed below.

Maintain posture alignment. Don't slouch on the couch with the laptop.

Work stations should be reviewed initially and with each office move. Adjust your chair, monitor, keyboard, mouse, laptop. Alternate keyboards and mice periodically.

Shift your gaze from the computer screen to the distance. And don't forget to blink!

Limit non-essential computer use. This may be heresy -- but do give the surfing, gaming, emailing, and text messaging a rest.

If pain occurs or persists, see your doctor, who may recommend wrist brace, ice packs, anti-inflammatory medication such as ibuprofen, cortisone injections, physical therapy, and most importantly, rest to allow healing. Don't procrastinate in addressing your symptoms -- the sooner you tend to them, the better off you are.

In their analysis, Park and his colleagues found that the bank tellers, clergy, aircraft mechanics and hairdressers had highest odds of dying from Alzheimer's disease. For Parkinson's disease, the highest risks were among biological scientists, teachers, clergy members and other religious workers.

The risk of death from presenile dementia - a form of dementia that arises before the age of 65 - was greatest among dentists, graders and sorters in industries other than agriculture and, again, clergy.

Veterinarians, hairdressers and graders and sorters had the highest risks of dying from motor neuron disease, the most common form of which is amyotrophic lateral sclerosis, also known as Lou Gehrig's disease - an invariably fatal degeneration of the central nervous system that causes muscle wasting and paralysis.

The findings, based on death records from 22 states for the years 1992 to 1998, are published in the American Journal of Industrial Medicine.