For years, they have been regarded as the world’s number one nation of fun-loving, pint-downing, party animals. But it seems they were pulling the wool over our eyes: Aussies spend more time asleep than anyone else on the planet.
According to a survey of global sleeping habits, nearly a quarter of all Australians (although not, presumably, Kylie, Dannii or much of Earls Court) hit the sack before 10pm, and 31% say they like to get more than nine hours’ kip a night.
By contrast the poll, which analysed the sleeping habits of 14 100 people in 28 different countries, showed that the Japanese survive on the least shut-eye — 41% have less than six hours a night.
And nobody stays up later than the Portuguese: 75% refuse to get their head down till gone midnight, and 28% are still going at 1am.
In the UK, a mere 28% stay up until after midnight, and 57% struggle out of bed before 7am.
But this is strictly mid-table in the survey, which was conducted by pollsters ACNielsen.
It concluded that ”our grandparents enjoyed a healthy average” of nine hours sleep a night, but that the stresses, strains and opportunities of modern life have cut into our down time.
”The new millennium has presented us with a 24-hour society,” said Frank Martell, president of ACNielsen Europe.
This is starkest in Asia, where, on average, people stay up late and get up earlier than anywhere else in the world.
Seven of the top 10 nocturnal nations are Asian, headed by the Taiwanese, 69% of whom go to bed after midnight (and 35% only after 1am). More than 65% of Koreans and Hong Kongers also routinely burn the midnight oil.
Portugal, Spain and Italy make the night owl’s top 10, helped no doubt by the long siestas that are still de rigueur in some parts of Europe.
When it comes to the early birds, half the world’s top 10 are also Asian, the survey shows: 91% of Indonesians and 88% of Vietnamese are up before 7am, most of them before 6am.
Thankfully, northern Europe’s work ethic restores some pride, with some 65% of Danes, Germans, Austrians, Finns and Norwegians also raring to go by 7am.
The Spanish are by some way Europe’s latest risers. Thirteen per cent are still in bed after 9am. – Guardian Unlimited Â