London, June 25 (IANS) Japan has asked its citizens to go to bed one hour earlier than normal and get up early in order to help tackle climate change.

The Morning Challenge campaign, launched by Japan's environment ministry encourages people to go to bed and get up early to reduce household carbon dioxide emissions.

Swapping late night electricity for an extra hour of morning sunlight can significantly cut the nation's carbon footprint, the campaign says. A typical family can reduce its carbon dioxide footprint by 85kg a year if everyone goes to bed and gets up one hour earlier.

The amount of carbon dioxide emissions potentially saved from going to bed an hour early was the equivalent of 20 percent of annual emissions from household lights.

"Many Japanese people waste electric power at night time, for example by watching TV until very late," a ministry spokesperson told The Daily Telegraph.

"But going to bed early and getting up early can avoid wasting electrical power which causes carbon dioxide emissions. If people change their lifestyle, we can save energy and reduce emissions."

The campaign also suggest people to take advantage of an extra hour of morning sunlight by improving their lifestyles in general by running, doing yoga and eating a nutritious breakfast.