If working in an office high-rise makes you tired and grumpy, it may not just be your job that’s to blame.

Skyscrapers may trigger motion-sickness, sleepiness and depression because they sway slightly in the wind, experts believe, and are launching a £7 million study to gauge the impact and work out how to prevent it.

Experts are concerned that the movements of very tall buildings and wobbly bridges are having a damaging effect on health.

Although they appear rigid in appearance, skyscrapers shift slightly in response to external forces, such as nearby building work or trains rumbling past, while strong winds can make them vibrate or sway at low frequencies.

Since the 1970s, floor slabs have become thinner and lighter and column spacing has increased, meaning that newer buildings often do not dampen vibrations as well as older ones.

Now a team of engineers, medics, physiologists and psychologists from the Universities of Exeter and Bath will explore claims that people experience motion sickness, fatigue, depression, poor concentration and lack of motivation if they live or work in a building that sways slightly.