How Electronics Affect Sleep

HOW ELECTRONICS AFFECT SLEEP AND WHAT YOU CAN DO ABOUT IT bed is almost as pervasive as during the day. Indeed, the majority of Americans report using an electronic device more than once a week within an he use of electronics be hour before bedtime. Moreover, at least one device can be found in the bedrooms of almost 90% of American adults and 75% of children's. While these devices benefit our lives in many ways, this evening habit has been shown to have detrimental effects on our sleep and long-term health and well-being. 3 KEY WAYS ELECTRONICS AFFECT YOUR SLEEP Reduces Your Melatonin Levels MELA TONIN th MELA TONIN Our body's circadian rhythm evolved Electronic devices such as laptops, TVs, according to the rising and setting of the sun where light exposure promotes wakefulness and darkness promotes sleep. This process is brought about by smartphones, and tablets all emit blue light which inhibits melatonin production that can delay the onset of sleep. the increase and decrease of the hormone melatonin. Keeps Your Brain (and Body) More Alert The combination of light from a screen with the changing visual and sound input from a late-night TV show or video game is enough to stimulate the mind and keep you awake. Even something as simple as a last-minute email before bed can keep your brain alert and muscles tense during a time when they should be relaxing. Electronic devices tempt you to stay up later once you're heavily invested in a TV show or other entertainment. The short night combined with excessive exposure to the device causes you to awaken the next morning feeling groggy and less alert throughout the day. 06: 00 Periodically Disrupts Your Sleep IT Many of us leave the ringer on our smartphones turned on overnight, which can disrupt sleep. Even when set to silent, keeping the device in your bedroom increases the temptation to use it if/when you wake up in the course of the night. All electronics emit some amount of light that can disrupt sleep. Even when switched off, the LED lights from power adapters on many electronics can be sufficiently bright to cause sleep disturbance. HOW TO PROTECT YOURSELF WHEN USING ELECTRONICS AT NIGHT IN YOUR BEDROOM Minimize the Amount of Light Exposure from Devices Twilight Lower the brightness of your Other techniques include switching your smartphone to "night mode," using the f.lux or Twilight app, wearing blue light blocking glasses, and inverting the color of your screen to white text on a black background. devices at night to reduce the suppression of melatonin and thus aid sleep. Read and Watch Only Predictable and Relaxing Content M Avoid reading, playing or watching stimulating or anxiety-provoking material right before 00 000 bedtime such as news, emails, and social media. Stick to familiar low-key content such as re-runs of a favorite TV show or an easygoing novel. M Consider making a playlist of relaxing music or nature sounds to use as part of your evening wind-down routine. Mute All Incoming Alerts and Notifications Make sure to set your As evening smartphone to block all approaches, start checking your alerts and notifications during the hours you normally sleep to help smart devices less frequently to get overcome the into the habit of "unplugging" for the night. phenomenon of FOMO or "fear of missing out." HOW TO MAKE YOUR BEDROOM A TECHNOLOGY-FREE ZONE While safeguarding yourself when using electronics at night is a good first step, the quality of your sleep will increase even more when you decide to eliminate the devices from your bedroom completely: Take Out the TV Make sure to remove TVs and video game consoles from your bedroom. While engaging in these activities in another area of your home may take some getting used to, you'll appreciate the benefits of enhanced sleep quality in the long term. Find a New Charging Station Pick another area in your home for charging portable electronics. You may even want to consider placing child safety plugs over outlets to avoid the temptation of recharging a device in your bedroom at night. Create a New Wake-Up Call 06:00 Start using a non-light emitting alarm clock. Some good options include classic wind-up clocks and wake-up lights designed with sleep hygiene in mind. Keep the Bedroom a Limited Use Space Reserve your bed for the sole purposes of sleep and intimacy. If you can't break the habit of reading in bed, stick to paper books as tablets and even some e-readers emit blue light via backlit displays. SOURCES https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NqG-9IL2ISI https://sleep.org/articles/ways-technology-affects-sleep Sleepy Bliss https://sleepfoundation.org/ask-the-expert/electronics-the-bedroom https://www.insidescience.org/news/using-electronic-devices-bed-tied-lousy-sleep https://hbr.org/2015/08/research-shows-how-anxiety-and-technology-are-affecting-our-sleep https://www.nbcnews.com/nightly-news/sleepless-america-how-digital-devices-keep-us-all-night-n381251 https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/to-your-health/wp/2014/12/22/ipads-tablets-smartphones-disrupt-good-sleep-study-finds o o o o