World Sleep Day - How the world sleeps

"Sleep is essential for health" - this is the theme of World Sleep Day 2023. But how well is the world actually sleeping? We show you how sleeping habits differ in different countries and cultures around the world and in which places people sleep particularly restfully.

Table of Contents

1. World Sleep Day
2. This is how the world sleeps
1. Sleep duration
2. sleep times
3. Sleep quality
3. Relaxing sleep anywhere in the world

1. World Sleep Day

Sleep is a fundamental part of our lives and plays an important role in our health and everyday well-being. World Sleep Day is an annual day of action created by the World Sleep Society to raise awareness of sleep. This year the day of action was on 17. March under the theme "Sleep is essential for health". We stand behind this motto 100% and are happy that with smartsleep we can contribute to supporting healthy sleep every day.

Because we all have to sleep, no matter how old we are, what gender we have or in which country we live. And depending on which living or cultural area we are in, there are also interesting differences in sleeping behavior! We will now show you what differences and similarities there are when it comes to sleep in different regions of the world.

2. This is how the world sleeps

Sleep duration

Sleep experts generally recommend a sleep duration of 7 to 8 hours per night. How long we sleep can also depend on our geographical location, the prevailing climate, cultural circumstances and social environment, among other things. The lighting conditions where we live or the professional and social structure of everyday life also have an influence on bed times and determine, for example, when we have to get up in the morning, go to work or school.

According to a study, the average global sleep duration in 2021 was 7 hours and 9 minutes - and the trend is falling! On average, women sleep about 15 minutes longer than men. The shortest sleep durations worldwide were observed in Indonesia, Japan and Malaysia. Here, the average person slept only up to 6 hours 46 minutes per night. People in Belgium, the Netherlands and Ireland sleep the longest – on average, they sleep approx. 7 hours and 30 minutes per night. In Germany, the average sleep duration is about 7 hours and 20 minutes, which is even higher than the global average.

sleep times

Our sleep-wake cycle is based on the natural course of the day, which is why sunrise and sunset also have an impact on sleep patterns. In warmer countries, there is often a longer period of rest around noon, during which a short nap is also held, such as during the traditional Spanish siesta. Researchers therefore suspect that the biological clock influences tiredness and bedtime in the evening according to local conditions, while getting up time in turn depends heavily on social duties.

The earliest sleep and wake times have been found in the US, Belgium, Australia and Denmark. In a global comparison, people in Spain, Italy or Brazil go to bed relatively late and accordingly get up a little later in the morning. Germany, France and Japan are in the middle when it comes to sleeping times. The average German goes to bed shortly after 11:15 p.m. and gets up again the next day between 7:00 a.m. and 7:15 a.m.

Sleep quality

A sufficiently long sleep does not always mean that the night is really restful. Nowadays we sleep much less than before and more and more people suffer from serious insomnia. As we know, the quality of sleep depends not only on personal circumstances, but also on many external influences and can therefore vary in quality in different parts of the world.

The "City Sleep Index 2020" survey, for example, examined which cities around the world are best to sleep in. In addition to common factors such as physical health, consumption behavior of caffeine, nicotine and alcohol, local circumstances such as the job and financial situation and environmental influences such as light, noise and air pollution included. The result of the study: According to the study, people sleep best in Amsterdam, Auckland and Glasgow. The worst sleep, on the other hand, was measured in the major cities of Sao Paulo, Tokyo and Los Angeles. In Germany, Dresden and Munich did best, taking 7th and 8th place in a global comparison.

3. Restful sleep anywhere in the world

No matter where you come from and under what circumstances you live - the most important thing when it comes to sleep is finding the right rhythm for you and adapting it to your own sleep needs. With good sleep hygiene, we can definitely help to find sufficient and restful sleep - even under difficult conditions, in hectic, noisy cities or when the alarm clock regularly rings too early.

4. Conclusion

• The motto of World Sleep Day 2023 is "Sleep is essential for health".

• Sleep habits differ in different parts of the world, especially in sleep duration, sleep times and sleep quality.

• Sleeping behavior in Germany is in the good midfield. The cities of Dresden and Munich are the best places to sleep.