Smartphones disrupt sleep and zap energy

Posted on Sun, 30 Mar 14

Think using your smartphone at night makes you more productive? New research suggests you need to think again.

According to the National Sleep Foundation one of the most commonly cited reasons for poor sleep is smartphone usage for work.

In a series of surveys of people in the workplace, both upper management and people in a wide variety of different jobs, it was found that people who used their smartphone for work at night had less sleep and lower energy the next day. The energy zapping effects of smartphones was much stronger than television, laptops or tablet computers.

“Smartphones are almost perfectly designed to disrupt sleep,” commented Professor Russell Johnson and Michigan State University, where the study was conducted.  “Because they keep us mentally engaged late into the evening, they make it hard to detach from work so we can relax and fall asleep.”

“In addition to keeping people mentally engaged at night, smartphones emit “blue light” that seems to be the most disruptive of all colours of light. Blue light is known to hinder melatonin, a chemical in the body that promotes sleep” says Professor Johnson.

If you have low energy, poor concentration, lack of motivation, are not falling asleep easily or are waking un-refreshed it might be because you are using your smartphone late into the evening. Try making a rule not to view your phone after 7 pm and you may sleep better, feel more energetic and be more productive the next day. 

Reference:

Michigan State University. Night-time Smartphone Use Zaps Workers Energy. Published: Jan. 22, 2014.