World Sleep day 2026

The scientific evidence is clear: your sleep is essential to health and wellbeing. Good sleep promotes wellness and resilience while poor sleep negatively impacts almost all aspects of your body and mind. Your sleep is just as important as nutrition and exercise! It’s time to make your sleep health a priority. Here is how to start:  

• Maintain a regular sleep schedule. 
• Create a relaxing environment for sleep. 
•  Reflect during your day: do you feel rested? 

Healthy sleep means more than just thinking ‘Have I had enough sleep?’ It can be helpful to think about the following questions: 

• Duration: how much did you sleep over 24 hours? 
• Efficiency: how well do you fall asleep and stay asleep? 
• Timing: when do you sleep? 
• Regularity: do you have consistent sleep and wake times? 
• Alertness: do you maintain good focus and attention during waking hours? 
• Quality: do you feel satisfied with your sleep? 

Each person’s everyday life is unique, so there is no single method to improve your sleep health. Each person needs to consider their circumstances individually

Create a personalised sleep plan that suits your unique lifestyle. Here are some tips to consider: 

• Enhance Your Sleep Environment:  Your sleep environment is one of the most important factors for good sleep.  Create a calm and relaxing space by keeping the lighting low, maintaining a cool room temperature, and minimizing screen light an hour before bed. Engage in soothing activities to unwind. 
• Set a Consistent Bedtime:  Plan to make your bedtime/wake up time consistent each day, regularity is essential to maintain our circadian rhythm. 
• Get the Right Amount of Sleep:  Ensure you are getting enough recommended sleep for your age.  Adults need 7-9 hours, teenagers 8-10 hours, children aged 6-12 years need 9-12 hours, and children aged 3-5 years should aim for 10-13 hours. But remember, our sleep needs our personal to us and you need more or less than the recommended number. 
• Track Your Sleep Satisfaction: Are you waking up feeling refreshed? Keep a sleep diary to monitor your progress and improve your sleep quality. 

For more information and resources of how to support your child or young person’s sleep, take a look at our website below: 👇 

 Sleep advice and useful information – Children and Family Health Devon