SLEEP PROBLEMS MAY BE DUE TO USE OF DIGITAL MONITORS
SLEEP PROBLEMS MAY BE DUE TO USE OF DIGITAL MONITORS
If you are having trouble sleeping lately, try reducing your use of backlit monitors of the type found in e-readers and laptop computers, during the time just before bed.
A study done by Brigham and Women’s Hospital and Harvard Medical School has found a link between sleep quality and the use of e-readers before bed. The study was done on 12 volunteers who used either an e-reader or a printed book before bed. The results showed that those who used e-readers had reduced amounts of REM sleep (Rapid Eye Movement that characterizes the deep regenerative sleep cycle) vs. those that read from printed books. The e-reader group also felt less alert in the morning and took longer to fall asleep.
Digital screens emit a high amount of blue light, which is thought to reduce the hormone melatonin and shift circadian rhythms. This causes your brain to enter “awake mode” making sleep more difficult. So avoid the use of any digital device just before bedtime and you’ll improve your chances of getting a good night’s sleep.