During this year's National People's Congress and Chinese People's Political Consultative Conference, sleep became a "high-frequency word", and "young people must go to bed at 11 o'clock" went viral on the internet. The "2025 China Sleep Health Research White Paper" released by the China Sleep Research Association shows that over half of adults in China fall asleep after midnight, and the proportion of college students falling asleep after 2am is as high as 25%. Insufficient or poor sleep has become a norm for contemporary people. March 21st is World Sleep Day. Han Fang, Secretary General of the World Sleep Society, President of the Asian Sleep Medicine Society, and Director of the Sleep Medicine Department at Peking University People's Hospital, hereby calls for going to bed before 11 pm to truly be considered as going to bed. Many people have this question about sleep: "Do we have to go to bed early? As long as we sleep for 8 hours, can we go to bed late and wake up late?" Han Fang introduced that the core value of going to bed is actually in line with the natural rhythm of the human body's biological clock, rather than simply accumulating time. The older generation often says, 'Don't look for immortal remedies, look for sleeping remedies.' This precisely confirms the importance of sleep in health preservation, and going to bed early is the key to grasping the value of sleep. Melatonin, the "sleep hormone" of the human body, is the dominant factor in regulating circadian rhythms. Its secretion strictly follows changes in light: it increases from 9 to 10 pm, enters its peak secretion at 11 pm, reaches its peak at 2 to 3 am, and quickly drops to its lowest point after dawn. Therefore, if a person falls asleep after 11 o'clock and misses the golden period of melatonin secretion, the body will be forced to be in an excited state, resulting in a situation of "being tired but not sleepy". Even if they catch up on sleep later and for enough time, the quality of sleep will be greatly reduced. Therefore, going to bed before 11pm is considered a true early sleep, and it is important to ensure that the deep sleep period from 11pm to 3pm the next day is not disturbed. Han Fang explained that this period is a critical time for organs such as the liver, kidneys, heart, and brain to self repair, and it is also the core window for the body to complete metabolism and repair energy. That's also why people who sleep for 8 hours and fall asleep before 11 am wake up more refreshed, while those who fall asleep in the early morning always feel tired. The folk tradition of "going to bed early and getting up early, being refreshed" is a vivid summary of this healthy rhythm. He emphasized that going to bed early is not a constraint, but rather a way for the body to conform to natural laws and complete self repair with minimal consumption. "Going to bed is not a task, but a way to love oneself, and it is the simplest way to protect one's health." Staying up one night will increase the body's inflammation level. "Staying up one night will increase the body's inflammation level, which is not an exaggeration. ”Han Fang cited relevant clinical studies and pointed out that staying up late for a long time is far from simply staying up at night and getting enough sleep. As the old saying goes, 'If you don't sleep for a night, you won't wake up for ten nights.' This type of injury is a continuous consumption of multiple systems in the body, and it accumulates with the number of nights you stay up late, transforming from an invisible injury to a visible disease. Physiologically speaking, staying up late can cause a series of chain reactions in the body: the immune system is the first to "lose control": staying up late can alter the characteristics of human monocytes, exacerbate chronic low-grade inflammation, and make the body's first line of defense fragile. Minor illnesses such as colds and allergies will frequently come knocking on the door. Metabolic system disorder out of control: people who sleep late for a long time are prone to hunger at night and eat frequently, which will lead to abnormal fat metabolism and insulin secretion, increasing the risk of obesity, diabetes and hypertension. The nervous system is overloaded: Sleep in the first half of the night is the key to forming long-term memory, and staying up late for a long time can prevent the brain from completing information storage, leading to problems such as memory decline, slow thinking, and lack of concentration. Cardiovascular system damage: Long term staying up late can lead to abnormal vasoconstriction and increased heart rate, significantly increasing the risk of coronary heart disease, myocardial infarction, and stroke. Reproductive system disorders: For women, staying up late can lead to abnormal secretion of estrogen, causing menstrual irregularities and ovulation disorders, thereby increasing the risk of infertility; For men, staying up late can reduce sperm motility and quantity, directly affecting fertility. Eye damage: Long term lack of sleep can also lead to symptoms such as dry eyes, eye irritation, blurred vision, and even worsen myopia and induce dry eye syndrome. The old saying 'sleep is the food of the eyes, and if you don't sleep, your eyes will wither' is the most vivid interpretation of this harm. In addition, staying up late for a long time can lead to excessive activity in the amygdala of the brain, making people more prone to anxiety and depression, leading to psychological problems. Anxiety can further exacerbate the difficulty of falling asleep, forming the dilemma of "the more anxious, the more unable to sleep, and the more anxious". The phenomenon of "difficulty in finding the number one insomnia clinic" mentioned in the "2025 China Sleep Health Research White Paper" is a direct manifestation of this vicious cycle. Having to stay up late, try these "remedial measures". Although we know the benefits of going to bed early, many people in life often encounter situations where they have to stay up late due to overtime in the workplace, academic pressure, unexpected affairs, etc. What should we do at this time? Han Fang has provided some targeted "remedial measures": staying up late and getting up late: occasionally feasible, do not stay up late for a long time. If it is only a single stay up, getting up appropriately late the next day (1-2 hours later than usual) can to some extent compensate for sleep duration and relieve physical fatigue. However, staying up late and getting up late for a long time can completely disrupt the biological clock, disrupt the secretion rhythm of melatonin, and ultimately form a vicious cycle of "unable to sleep at night and unable to get up in the morning", which can actually worsen sleep disorders. Weekend sleep: Moderate for young people, not for middle-aged and elderly people. Research shows that people in late adolescence to early adulthood (16-25 years old), due to the special physiological rhythm, sleep 1-2 hours more on weekends than on weekdays, which can reduce the risk of depression and is a physiological self rescue for the body. But there are two key principles for catching up on sleep: first, the duration should not exceed 10 hours, and second, one must wake up before noon, otherwise it will cause delayed melatonin secretion on Sunday night, leading to "Sunday insomnia" and making Monday even more tiring. The biological clock of middle-aged and elderly people is like an "aging spring", with weak ability to regulate rhythms. Weekend sleep not only fails to repair sleep, but also disrupts the circadian rhythm, leading to fragmented sleep. Therefore, it is recommended for middle-aged and elderly people to "sleep less and maintain regularity" after staying up late. Dietary remedy: Light diet is the main approach, avoiding high sugar and high oil foods. After staying up late, it is important to avoid high sugar and high oil foods, especially fried foods, which can increase the burden on the digestive system and metabolism. It is recommended to prioritize low calorie foods rich in B vitamins and protein for breakfast after staying up late, such as low-fat milk soaked cereal, lotus root powder, green vegetables, fresh fruits, etc., to help the body repair. If you feel hungry while staying up late, you can consume a small amount of light carbohydrates. If you are not hungry, try not to eat to avoid fat accumulation at night. Soothing regulation: Short term sleep and mild exercise. If there is no long period of sleep during the day, a 20-30 minute nap is the best choice. Even a 10 minute eye rest can effectively relieve brain fatigue. After catching up on sleep during the day, you can also engage in light exercise such as squats, tiptoes, or soothing exercises like Eight Section Brocade and Tai Chi to avoid physical stiffness and fatigue caused by prolonged sitting. In addition, taking a hot bath after staying up late can promote blood circulation and help quickly enter deep sleep. Han Fang emphasized that all the "remedial measures" mentioned above are only "loss reduction" and cannot completely repair the damage caused by staying up late. Regular sleep is the fundamental solution. 【 Extended Reading 】 If you want to go to bed early, start with these: wake up at a fixed time every day from 7 to 8 o'clock (can be delayed by 1 hour on weekends, not exceeding 9 o'clock), expose yourself to morning light in the morning, and calibrate your biological clock; Long term late sleepers should go to bed 10-15 minutes early every day, adjust once a week, and gradually transition to before 23:00. Optimize evening time: Split work tasks, prioritize completing core tasks during the day, and handle simple tasks during commuting; One hour before bedtime, put down work and your phone, listen to white noise or read a paper book to relax. Quickly relieve anxiety: Practice the "478 Breathing Technique" before bedtime, which involves inhaling for 4 seconds, holding for 7 seconds, exhaling for 8 seconds, repeating 3-5 times, or doing 5-minute shoulder, neck, and leg stretches. In addition, the following aspects should also be adjusted: Caffeine control: Do not drink coffee, strong tea, or energy drinks after 2 pm to avoid suppressing melatonin. Optimize sleeping environment: Keep the bedroom completely dark, quiet (noise<30 decibels), room temperature between 18-22 ℃, and use blackout curtains and earplugs; If you still have difficulty falling asleep or waking up at night after 1-2 weeks of adjustment, it is recommended to seek medical attention from a sleep specialist in a timely manner. These sleep misconceptions should be avoided. Misconception 1: The more sleep you get, the healthier you are. Traditional Chinese medicine says, "Food supplements are better than medicine supplements, and sleep supplements are better than food supplements." Western medicine says, "Sleep is a natural restorative for the body." So, the more sleep you get, the healthier your body is? The key to determining whether sleep is sufficient is to look at the state after waking up, rather than just the duration. ”Han Fang said that adults need 7-9 hours of sleep every day; Teenagers can sleep for 9-11 hours due to their growth and development needs; Elderly people can spend 5-7 hours a day. Excessive sleep can lead to dizziness and fatigue, and instead increase the risk of cardiovascular disease. If the 'little sleep' during the day lasts more than 30 minutes, it will enter the deep sleep stage and wake up feeling even more exhausted, which is not worth the loss. Misconception 2: Drinking alcohol before bedtime can help sleep. Some people believe that drinking some alcohol before bedtime can help sleep. Han Fang reminds that although alcohol can help people fall asleep quickly, it can interfere with deep sleep, causing frequent awakenings at night and greatly reducing sleep quality. Long term dependence on alcohol to aid sleep can also lead to sleep disorders. Misconception 3: Snoring indicates good sleep. Many people think that snoring is a normal phenomenon, especially as they get older, snoring does not have much impact and should not be ignored. Some people also think that snoring indicates good sleep. Han Fang introduced that snoring is divided into physiological and pathological types. Physiological snoring is caused by improper sleeping posture and excessive fatigue, with mild and regular snoring sounds; Pathological snoring is a signal of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), characterized by intermittent and loud snoring accompanied by nocturnal breathing pauses, which can lead to hypoxia and fragmented sleep. Long term untreated snoring increases the risk of hypertension, stroke, and sudden death. If snoring is accompanied by daytime sleepiness and lack of concentration, seek medical attention promptly. (New Society)