Why Can't I Sleep At Night? Just Maybe It's Your Cell Phone
In the information age those of us who grew up pre-computer are simply overwhelmed. Speaking for myself I am constantly distracted.
I now have 5 e- mail accounts, mostly because the spam builds up and seems to multiply by the day. In vain attempts to avoid that, I have over the years opened one new account after another and delete has become my mantra. If I'm not at a computer, I'm constantly checking the smartphone. So many audio alerts for texts and e-mails that I end up turning off the sound of the entire device. One click (on a real switch on the phone) and I'm back in charge. Of course the phone doesn't ring anymore so I incessantly check it!
Information overload though is only the thin edge of the wedge when it comes to better sleep as we are now also subjecting ourselves to dangerous levels of blue light. Blue light is natural in sunlight. It has a short wavelength and produces high energy. It's one of the reasons we wear sunglasses! Artificial blue light on the other hand is emitted from flat screen TV's, computers, LED lights, fluorescent lamps and smart phones. It's as though we were spending countless hours outside everyday and every night in bright sunshine. Our vision is suffering and to make matters worse we can't sleep anymore. And as we increasingly rely on technology for pretty much everything, the situation is getting worse. Sound familiar? Blue light adversely affects sleep and confuses the body's natural circadian rhythm, it also suppresses melatonin which incidentally any light can do but blue light is far worse and it's killing our sleep!
Of course sleep deprivation has always had many components but this addiction to being plugged in 24/7 can be treated. In the natural order of things the sun comes up and we wake. It goes down and we sleep. At least that was how it used to be. We are in control though and we can temper our electronic input as we would with any other habit. It takes a little practice but the reward could be a trip to dreamland A study by Harvard University concluded that turning off computers, TV's and yes cell phones 2 hours before bedtime will significantly improve our sleep patterns. Even 1 hour will make a big difference. So turn the screens off early and just maybe you can sleep again!
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