Record numbers of men and women are on the lookout for secret affairs, as experts claim January 4th is the worst day of the year for infidelity.

With the stress of Christmas taking its toll on many relationships, IllicitEncounters.com has reported a surge of activity.

Yesterday 994 unhappily married people decided to look for a new love via the UK's leading dating site - more than double the average traffic - and the company predicts even more will sign up today.

It had recruited 650 new members by lunchtime and usage is set to rise by 250 percent.

With the majority of the British public back to work and some feeling fed up after a long and hectic festive break, experts says the trend is unsurprising.

Cheating consultant Rosie Freeman-Jones said: 'Christmas and New Year are times when couples spend an intensive period of time with each other and their families.

'This can be quite claustrophobic and sometimes leads to a 'cabin fever' situation where both parties feel irritated with each other and underlying problems are exasperated.

'The 4th of January is typically one of the first days back to work and back to freedom - and spouses take this opportunity to explore all the things they couldn't under the watchful eye of their partner.'

She adds that social networking websites have made it easier for people to start discreet affairs. According to law firm Divorce-Online, Facebook was cited as a reason for a third of divorces last year.

A number of other revealing findings were released as One Poll conducted one of the largest ever surveys on infidelity.

Statistics showed that 18.3 percent of women and 25.4 percent of men have cheated on their current partner at least once.

Away from the internet women tend to strike up relationships with people they already know, such as work colleagues or former flames.

Men on the other hand will head to nightclubs and bars in the hope of finding fleeting romance with someone other than their spouse.

(Read by Nelly Min. Nelly Min is a journalist at the China Daily Website.)

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(Agencies)