According to Colin Jackson, director of Baronworth, discipline is required on the part of consumers if they are to avoid incurring pressure on their finances when they are older and to save money effectively for spending in later life.

Mr Jackson advised people to think about what they want to achieve when saving - whether it is putting funds away for retirement or financing a holiday - and so to choose the product which is right for them. However, should the current difficulties of the public struggling to save, whether on a long or short-term basis, persist, he suggested that "over time it will lead to major problems".

Yet, in taking such time to consider their finances, many may not only find that they are in a more advantageous position in which to invest cash into savings accounts but also become more able to make payments on areas such as loans and credit cards with greater ease.

He said: "The first thing is to get into the discipline of saving. If you decide that you really must save every month it's no good saying that you'll put 10 pounds in a building society account every month, set up some sort of saving scheme where it's paid by direct debit. Once you're into the discipline it becomes part of your general overheads and as far as the money in the bank goes you just pay your savings in each month."

Mr Jackson added that despite the recent credit crunch impacting upon the availability of cheap loans and other competitively-priced lending options, he is sure that "people will continue to borrow". However, he stated consumers using their credit cards to make mortgage payments could find themselves getting into a "spiral" of financial difficulties.

The director reported that as a "lot of people" use such a type of borrowing to meet such demands on their spending, they will often continue to use plastic cards to make up for shortfalls in their income at the end of each month.

In turn, he advised that those doing this "are in the most awful situation" in terms of attempting to get to grips with spending. Consequently, those looking to get out the money management difficulties induced by using several credit cards at once may wish to consider applying for a debt consolidation loan.

Alternatively, many people may find that taking out a personal loan is a more cost-effective option than using credit cards at all in terms of handling spending pressures as the former often carries more competitive rates of interest.

Whether looking to pay off numerous plastic cards at once or free up disposable income to invest into savings and pension schemes, the taking out of a debt consolidation loan could be advisable. And the help with finance that such a loan provides may be of particular help to a rising number of Britons.

A recent consumer confidence survey by GfK NOP revealed that the country's general economic wellbeing stood at -10 in November - the lowest figure noted since March 2003. Thus such a loan may be of use to those aiming at reducing pressure on their spending.