Take your phone to take that last look on social networks or watch a video before bed seems harmless – but you may be sabotaging your sleep. A study recently published in the periodical Frontiers Psychiatry reinforces the alert: night screen time has a direct impact on rest quality and significantly raises the risk of insomnia.
THE searchperformed by scientists from Norway, Australia and Sweden, analyzed the habits of almost 40,000 people aged 18 to 28. For each additional hour of use of electronic devices in bed, the risk of insomnia increases by 59%, concludes the investigation. In addition, the practice causes an average reduction of 24 minutes in total sleep time.
According to Leticia Soster, a clinical neurophysiologist and sleep medical at Hospital Israelita Albert Einstein, the conclusions presented by the study confirm what experts have observed in their clinical practice. This is mainly due to two factors: the first of these is blue light, emitted by electronic devices, which affects the production of melatonin, a hormone that signals to our body that is time to bed.
“The second is behavioral: the content consumed, often stimulating or emotionally charged, generates a brain activation that makes the relaxation necessary to start sleeping. That is, both light and type of activity end up delaying and affecting rest,” he explains.
In the short term the consequences are lighter. “Poor quality sleep triggers problems such as irritability, lower daytime concentration power, memory failures and learning difficulties,” says Pulmonologist and Sleep Medicine Expert Luciane Immelliziere Luna de Mello, doctor at the Sleep Institute, Federal University of São Paulo (Unifesp).
After a while, the effects may be more serious. “Increases the risk of anxiety and depression and physical issues such as weight gain and greater predisposition to metabolic diseases such as diabetes. Sleep is fundamental for general health maintenance,” adds Soster.
Chronic sleep deprivation does not only affect mood and daily performance: in the long run it raises the risk of cardiovascular disease – such as infarction and stroke – and compromises bone health, favoring the development of osteoporosis. In addition, inappropriate sleep is linked to cognitive decline, increasing the risk of dementia such as Alzheimer’s, and weakens the immune system, reducing the body’s ability to defend against infections.
“But it is important to reinforce that the impact of screens is not only measured by the time of use, but also by the moment and type of activity. Sometimes, a few minutes of a very stimulating activity on the phone before bed are enough to harm sleep,” says Leticia Soster.
Putting limits to the use of screens, especially at night, is the only way to protect yourself from these damage. “The ideal is to avoid exposure to screens two hours before going to bed,” says Mello. In addition, there are currently settings on mobile phones and tablets to reduce the emission of blue light at night, which can help but do not replace the need to reduce use.
To ensure more reparative nights, the guidance is to adopt a rigorous “sleep hygiene”. This includes setting fixed and waking up times – without opening on weekends or holidays – and avoiding at least three hours before bedtime, caffeine drinks (coffee, teas and sodas) or alcohol. It is also important to opt for light meals at night, keep the room as darker and silent as possible and regulate the temperature of the room to be pleasant, without heat or excessive cold.
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Was this content originally published in stay on mobile before bed? Understand how the habit harms your sleep on the CNN Brazil website.
Source: CNN Brasil
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