World Sleep Day 2016 is celebrated today with the slogan “Good Sleep is a Reachable Dream”. This is an annual event organized by the World Sleep Day Committee of The World Association of Sleep Medicine (WASM).
The slogan of this year expressed a desire, sleep well, which comes true for only 1/3 of the world’s population. The vast majority of people on this planet have trouble sleeping at some point. It may be said that lack of sleep is a global epidemic that threatens much of the world’s population regardless of where they live.
Healthy sleep, a balanced diet and adequate exercise are the basic pillars of good health.
Sleep deprivation causes health problems and decreases the quality of life of people who suffer from these disorders.
Many sleep disorders are preventable and treatable. However, only 33% of people who have trouble sleeping go to the doctor. Most people think their sleep problems are not important or temporary, believe that they do not need treatment, or decide to self-medicate without thinking of the consequences.
World Sleep Day 2016 is specifically intended to draw the attention of society on the benefits of a healthy sleep and promote prevention of sleep disorders threatening health and quality of life for up to 45% of the world’s population.
To do this, on this day we aim to raise awareness about the importance of sleep and improve understanding of sleep disorders by fostering knowledge and information.
A better understanding of these problems and more research in this area will help reduce the negative impact of sleep disorders in health and in all areas of human performance.
Recalling last year’s slogan (“When sleep is sound, health and happiness abound”) we can say that good sleep improves our health and makes us happier. And the best part is that it is a reachable dream.