#OneMoreHour of sleep for healthier, longer, better lives

By Benjamin Ang | 26 Sep 2019

Special coverage - #OneMoreHour initiative (Video edited by Azri Bahari)

Sleep deprivation is a critical and growing health issue in Asia. As a leader and solution provider, AIA has boldly stepped up to promote sleep sufficiency and quality in support of Healthier, Longer, Better Lives.

The ambitious new initiative will raise awareness about the health benefits associated with getting sufficient sleep. It is designed to help combat sleep deprivation underpinned by a call to action in the form of #OneMoreHour.

It will also provide tips, tools and rewards that encourage people to change their behaviour to get more and better quality sleep.

To coincide with the launch of this initiative, AIA has introduced updates to AIA Vitality, its leading science-backed wellness programme, to encourage and reward healthier sleeping habits. The AIA Vitality app will motivate people to improve their sleep habits through a new sleep assessment and sleep-based rewards, as well as sleep tracking tools.

Stuart A. Spencer, AIA Group Chief Marketing Officer, said, “AIA is proud to be introducing this bold, thoughtful and comprehensive effort that will raise awareness of sleep sufficiency and quality in support of our brand promise: Healthier, Longer, Better Lives. Just one more hour of sleep can provide an extensive number of health benefits and yet sleep deprivation continues to affect an increasing number of people in Asia.”

Just a few examples of these benefits include:

Reduced likelihood of suffering from chronic disease.
Increased ability to maintain a healthy weight.
A stronger immune system.
Boosted mood and energy levels.
Reduced stress and anxiety.
Better attention.
Better memory decoding.

This is not a marketing campaign

“This is not a marketing campaign. This is a movement. We will not stop talking about it. We have to make a stand and lead. There is a myth that if we sacrifice sleep, we will get ahead in life. In reality, sleep doesn’t get in the way of personal progress: it enables it,” said Mr Spencer.

“The true catalyst of success is getting enough sleep. Sleep is the ultimate performance drug,” he added.

AIA has partnered with Professor Michael Chee, one of Asia’s leading Sleep experts from Duke-NUS Medical School and Yong Loo Lin School of Medicine in Singapore.

Professor Chee, who has spent the last 16 years examining how sleep deprivation affects the body and the brain, said research findings have consistently pointed to how sleep loss degrades perception, attention, and memory decoding.

He said: “Working hard is good but sacrificing sleep hours in the interest of working harder has its limits. We believe that for more and more people in Asia, it is turning to the side of overdoing it and it’s going to harm their health.”

On the partnership with AIA on this initiative, Professor Chee said, “We are going to change the health landscape through this programme. It is not a one-off. The willingness to go all in, in trying to improve sleep in Asia territory where sleep duration is one of the shortest in the world, is incredibly exciting.”

Over half in Asia gets insufficient sleep

In preparation for its sleep sufficiency initiative, AIA conducted research in Mainland China, Hong Kong, Thailand, Singapore, and Malaysia. Key findings include:

Over half of people surveyed (55%) said they get just 6 hours or fewer of sleep per night (7 to 9 hours is the optimal amount of sleep for most adults).
69% don’t feel good about how much sleep they get.
62% said they either worry about not getting enough sleep or want more sleep.
30% are not satisfied with their quality of sleep.
62% agreed that getting one more hour of sleep would boost their mood and energy.

In Singapore, likewise, over half of respondents worry about not getting enough sleep or want to get more: 55% of people surveyed get just six hours or fewer of sleep per night and 59% agree that getting #OneMoreHour of sleep would boost their mood and energy.

(Infographics on findings in Singapore. Credit: AIA)

Sleep content hub

AIA has also created a new sleep content hub (http://www.aia.com/onemorehour) which provides extensive information and insights on how to achieve better sleeping habits. Written and video content on the hub includes tips from AIA’s Global Ambassador, David Beckham, as well as from the Company’s other partners such as Tottenham Hotspur Football Club and leading Chef, Jeremy Pang.

Mr Spencer said, “AIA is celebrating the physical and mental benefits that getting more sleep can provide. We understand the issues that stand in the way of getting a good night’s sleep and we are committed to helping people across Asia to achieve healthier, longer, better sleep as an important element of their ability to live healthier, longer, better lives.”