HEADS DOWN: Students at Huwan Primary School in Jinzhai County, Anhui Province, take a nap on their desks after lunch time (LIU JUNXI)

Originally formed on a whim, Peking University's Up Association—though the literal translation of the name would be The "Get Out Of Bed" Association—has been experiencing a sudden expansion in its membership and public profile.

"We've been fighting to get up early for seven months," said Hu Xiaonan, founder of the association, which aims to help college students drag themselves out of bed in the morning.

On March 25, Hu got up at 11 a.m. like normal, but felt a pang of guilt when she realized how little she achieved by doing so. "I made up my mind to do something," said Hu, who then went online to suggest the idea of forming an organization to raise awareness of the virtues of waking up early.

The idea quickly gained support from more than 1,000 students at Peking University, even though only 20 of them showed up at the association's first group breakfast at 7:15 a.m. the next morning.

"Many college students sleep in very late and get up around lunch time, " Hu said. "This is partially because the schedule at college is far less intense than it was in high school."

Hu also blames addiction to computer games, smartphones and tablets for the bad sleep habits of young people.

"I hear friends complaining about not being able to get up earlier and swearing that they will sleep earlier tonight and wake up earlier tomorrow, but it is really hard to overcome such a routine when you are stuck in it," Hu said. "Even for the members of the Up Association, it is rare that one of us sticks to a new routine for a long time. We see people come and go. Fewer than 10 make it every morning."

Difficulty drifting off

For college students, keeping up a healthy sleeping routine takes a bit of self-discipline, but for others, the difficulties are somewhat more complex.

On November 8, the Chinese Medical Doctor Association (CMDA) revealed the "sleep index" of the Chinese populace, 64.3, which is just above the passing mark of 60. This shows that more than 90 percent of the population aren't getting high-quality sleep, even though the hours they spend sleeping may be enough. On average, Chinese people sleep for eight hours and 50 minutes every day, much more than the seven to eight hours' sleep recommended by medical experts.

In March, the CMDA launched a survey on the sleep quality of residents in 20 cities, 20 counties and 20 rural areas across China, polling a total of around 107,000 people in two months.

The results showed that 14 percent of the respondents stayed up after midnight, 15 percent found it hard to get to sleep, and more than 55 percent reported that they have to resort to additional measures to help them fall asleep—such as listening to soft music or reading. Bad moods, physical ailments and stress have the strongest effect on sleep quality.