Are you having sleep problems? So are 300 million people in China. A recent survey shows that while people spent more time at home in 2020 due to the Covid-19 pandemic, it took an extra two or three hours for many to fall asleep. The number of online searches for sleep problems also increased 43%. In just six years, the national average sleep time dropped by two hours, from 8.8 hours in 2013 to 6.9 in 2019. And perhaps not surprisingly, those in their twenties and thirties sleep the latest — and least — among all age groups.

Young Chinese people are not ignorant to the downsides of insufficient sleep or similarly damaging health habits, however. In response, they have come up with unique ways to still have their fun while exacting their “revenge bedtime procrastination.”

This new lifestyle, dubbed “punk health,” or pengke yangsheng (朋克养生) in Mandarin, tries to offset unhealthy lifestyles with health hacks, often derived from traditional Chinese medicine (TCM). Eye masks, earplugs, foot pads, smart watches, and healthcare products are among the most popular items with this cohort. As a result, the need to improve slumber has created a burgeoning “sleep economy” in China, believed to be worth 400 billion RMB (over 60 billion USD) this year.

Interviewer: Lu Zhao

Videographer: Michael Ren

Editor: Michael Ren

Translation & Subtitling: Lu Zhao

In RADII Street Scope, we hit the streets of China to give young people the chance to tell us what they think in their own words.

RADII shares stories from the center of Chinese youth culture.

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