Last Updated:March 14, 2025, 07:20 IST

World Sleep Day, on March 14, promotes healthy sleep habits and awareness about sleep disorders. Founded in 2008, the 2025 theme is ‘Make Sleep Health a Priority.’

World Sleep Day is observed annually on March 14 to promote healthy sleep habits, raise awareness about sleep disorders, and highlight the importance of quality rest. Organised by the World Sleep Day Committee of the World Sleep Society, this global initiative sheds light on the negative impact of sleep disorders on overall health while advocating for their prevention and treatment.

Scroll down to learn more about the significance, history, this year’s theme, and the 10-3-2-1-0 Rule.

World Sleep Day 2025: History

Celebrated since 2008, World Sleep Day takes place on the Friday preceding the vernal equinox in the northern hemisphere. This annual awareness event was founded by a dedicated group of physicians and researchers specialising in sleep medicine.

It was co-chaired by Dr Antonio Culebras, a neurology professor at Upstate Medical University, and Dr Liborio Parrino, an associate professor of neurology at the University of Parma, Italy.

World Sleep Day 2025: Theme

This year, World Sleep Day is being conducted under the theme of ‘Make Sleep Health a Priority’ to raise more awareness about sleep habits. This theme also informs about how good sleep promotes wellness and resilience, while poor sleep negatively impacts your body and mind.

Many don’t realise that sleep is as important as good food and working out.

World Sleep Day 2025: Significance

To maintain physical, mental and social well-being, we need to get enough sleep, a healthy diet and exercise. While people do focus on exercise and their diet, they often do not take their sleeping schedule seriously.

World Sleep Day was created to challenge this belief and promote sleep health around the world. It places a strong emphasis on getting the recommended amount of sleep and raises awareness of the importance of maintaining healthy sleeping habits.

What is the 10-3-2-1-0 rule?

The 10-3-2-1-0 sleep rule is a sleep routine that has grown in popularity in recent times. Sports medicine physician and pediatrician Dr Jess Andrade’s post on this sleep rule has caught everyone’s attention.

The sleep method outlines pre-sleep habits to implement in the daytime, 10, three, two, and one hours before bedtime. The goal is to help you prioritise the amount and quality of rest you need before sleeping.

Avoid caffeine for 10 hours before bed. Stopping caffeine use ten hours before bed is the first step in this rule. Therefore, you should have your final cup before noon if you want to go to bed by ten.

Avoid eating or drinking alcohol for three hours before bed.

The 10-3-2-1-0 rule states that you should eat your last meal at least three hours before going to bed. Eating too close to bedtime may increase your likelihood of waking up during the night.

Alcohol also affects your sleep cycle by decreasing rapid eye movement (REM) sleep.

No work two hours before bed. Signing off from any work-related tasks two hours before your preferred bedtime is the next step in this rule. Reports suggest that mind-stimulating activities might increase attentiveness, making it harder to fall asleep.

No screens for one hour before bed. Eliminating screen time on all computers, TVs, and phones an hour before bed is the final step before bedtime. Your circadian rhythm may be affected by nighttime exposure to artificial light. Your brain tells your body it’s time to go to sleep by releasing the hormone melatonin just before bed.

What does 0 stand for?

In the 10-3-2-1-0 routine, hitting the snooze button is completely off-limits. The thinking behind this rule is that ‘snoozing’ disturbs your sleep cycle. While disrupted sleep has been shown to have short- and long-term health consequences, opinions are mixed on whether hitting snooze is a substantial disruption.