High-tech sleep products come of age in China

For every scenario of trouble, the marketplace has a solution, promising benefits

It is said over 500 million Chinese adults usually have some difficulty in getting a sound sleep — and that has spawned a huge market, with products and services offering relief, in the process revolutionizing how people rest.

"I haven't been sleeping well for the past week due to work-related stress, so I'm considering turning to some 'sleep products' such as melatonin pills and smart sleep devices," said Li Shuxian, a 28-year-old Beijing-based white collar worker, in mid-May. Li said insomnia has been giving her sleepless nights of late.

The insomnia rate among Chinese adults stood at a staggering 38.2 percent in 2023. As many as 510 million individuals experience sleep disorders, significantly affecting their quality of life and work, according to a report from China's sleep big data center, which was established in Beijing in March 2023.