The Royal Society For Public Health (England) Introduce ‘slumber number’ as guideline hours of sleep each day
The Royal Society Say that “every human requires a different amount of sleep throughout their life-cycle dependent on age – although exactly how much varies from person to person. Our public polling shows that many people are under-sleeping by roughly an hour, which when accumulated over a week means a sleep deficit of around one full night.
To provide the public with more accurate information, in consultation with our ‘sleep panel’, made up of experts in the field of sleep, we have devised a “slumber number” table for specific age groups to provide guidance for the public on roughly how much sleep they should be aiming to have.
| Age group (yrs) | Hours sleep per day |
| 1 – 2yrs | 11 – 14 hours |
| 3 – 5yrs | 10 – 13 hours |
| 6 – 13yrs | 9 – 11 hours |
| 14 – 17yrs | 8 – 10 hours |
| 18 – 25yrs | 7 – 9 hours |
| 26 – 64yrs | 7 – 9 hours |
| 65+ yrs | 7 – 8 hours |
*Adapted from National Sleep Foundation recommendations 2015
Royal Society For Public Health (2016), Waking Up to The Health benefits of Sleep. Royal Society For Public Health