Don't count on a pay rise for your wellbeing, study says sleep gives you a better life!

New Delhi: The importance of getting a sound, good night's sleep – 6-8 hours – has been emphasised through numerous studies carried out in the past.

Sleep is also something that brings a lot of happiness to those who manage to get enough of it. But, there's also something else that puts a smile on a person's face – no prizes for guessing – a pay hike!

But, which one's better? Before this triggers a heated debate, let us tell you the results of a study that took the pains to find this out for you and well, sleep won hands down.

As per the study, a pay rise doesn't do as much for your wellbeing as sleep does. A survey of thousands of Britons by the Oxford Economics and the National Centre for Social Research found that a healthy amount of sleep was the strongest indicator of living well.

According to a report in the Independent UK, those who were satisfied with their sex lives, felt secure in their job and were connected to their community, were also disproportionately likely to rank at the top of a new wellbeing measure, the Living Well Index.

Researchers found the average Briton had a “living well score” of around 62 out of 100, with those living the best defined as the 20 percent of the population with the largest number of points, scoring between 72 and 92.

Income had little impact on how well people felt, the researchers found, with a 50 percent pay rise lifting a wellbeing score by just 0.5. Meanwhile, sleep quality could explain 3.8 points of difference between a typical person’s score and those in the top 20 percent.

The report further mentioned that for the average person, improving sleep to the level of someone at the top of the index would be equivalent to them having over four times as much disposable income.