Primary students do homework at an after-school care center in Yuping Dong Autonomous County in southwest China's Guizhou Province, Feb. 27, 2019. (Xinhua/Hu Panxue)

More than 60 percent of Chinese youngsters aged between 6-17 sleep less than eight hours a day as most are burdened with homework, a report showed on Monday.

More than 80 percent of Chinese adolescents aged 13-17 lack sleep, while more than 30 percent of children aged 6-12 also suffer from sleep deprivation, according to a report obtained by the Global Times from the Chinese Sleep Research Society (CSRS) on Monday.

About two-thirds of 70,000 people surveyed said the main reason for sleep deprivation among Chinese teenagers is the pressure from schoolwork, it said. The use of electronic products and an improper sleeping environment also prevent youngsters from sleeping early. 

The CSRS report shows that poor sleep quality can influence adolescents' physical and mental health and their studies as well. A lack of sleep can lead to serious consequences, such as obesity, neurasthenia and even depression. 

Teenagers suffering from a lack of sleep usually perform poorer among peers. More than 40 percent of those who lack sleep rank below 75 percent of their classmates, said the report.

School-age children (6-13 years old) and teens (14-17 years old) need about 8-11 hours of sleep per night to function best, according to the National Sleep Foundation, a sleep research organization based in Washington DC.