ACCORDING TO A REPORT RELEASED by Chinese Medical Doctor Association, about 38.2 percent of Chinese adults, a total of 300 million, suffer from sleeplessness. Among different age groups, those in their 20s, suffer most as their sleep disorder rate is as high as 84 percent. China Daily writer Zhang Zhouxiang comments:

Staying up late has long been a common phenomenon among youngsters. According to the report, about three-fourths of those in their 20s sleep after 23:00, while one-third do not sleep until after 1 am.

No wonder, one media outlet after another uses "The most sleepless generation" to describe those born in the 1990s. The case for those born in the 2000s is better but still far from satisfying.

It should be noted that lack of sleep is not only a personal issue, it is also a public health issue. It deals heavy damage to the brain and in turn causes psychological problems. Data show that the risk of depression, anxiety, even suicide, for those who suffer from long-term sleeplessness is 40 percent higher than for those who get ample sleep.

What is depriving young adults of their sleep?

A commonly agreed cause is the high pressure they are under. As society has changed at a rapid pace, the pressure upon young people, especially those serving their first several years in an office, is becoming increasingly higher. "Work hard or get out of the office" is a common situation for young employees.

Beside that, the popularity of smartphones should also take part of the blame. According to Huang Yangming, an associate professor at the Department of Psychology at Taiwan-based Fu Jen Catholic University, the blue light of smartphones curbs human body's secretion of melatonin, which in turn changes the human body's sleep cycle. Many young people have the habit of using their smartphones before trying to sleep, which makes things worse because it takes time for the human brain to pacify from the excited state, while the electromagnetic waves also lower the quality of sleep.

At least within the foreseeable future, neither of these two causes of sleeplessness are likely to disappear, but to get a better night's sleep people should at least avoid playing with their smartphones before going to bed. That might be hard to do, but all good habits start with the first step.