Technology and Sleep

The Link between Technology and Sleep

The use of technology is a part of life for many people because it’s a way of communicating with people especially on social media. Technology is more appealing to people because of social media and apps. Technology is great for a lot of things but it can be a problem when adults and children are on it constantly. A lack of sleep affects your energy, mood, and how you are able to work. People constantly feel tired because they aren’t getting the right amount sleep and the use of technology can cause that. Technology can over stimulate the brain which affects sleep hormones and how people sleep.

Many adults and students talk about how they hardly sleep well or didn’t get enough sleep. It’s most likely because they don’t go to bed till late at night or procrastinate working on their homework. It is their responsibility to go to bed at a reasonable time instead of going to bed after midnight, but their lack of sleep could also be caused by being on technology before they go to bed. People like to unwind before they go to bed and going on their phones or watching videos because it’s usually what people especially students like to do to relax. A lot of people may not know how much being on technology before they go to bed affects their sleep.

The bright blue light of phones or computers affects the sleep hormones of the brain which causes your brain to be more alert and awake. Melatonin is the hormone that helps control peoples sleep cycle and when that hormone is affected it’s harder to have a good night’s sleep.

“The blue light emitted by screens on cell phones, computers, tablets, and televisions restrain the production of melatonin, the hormone that controls your sleep/wake cycle or circadian rhythm.”(sleep.org). Most people use technology not too long before they go to bed and that is the main cause of restraining the melatonin that is needed to have a healthy sleep cycle. Having phones in your room at night may also affect how you sleep because of text messages or other notifications that that can wake or disturb you from sleeping. This doesn’t mean that people shouldn’t be on their phones but their use of it should be limited.

There are ways that adults and students can get the right amount of sleep. They can limit their phone use before bed by not using it at least one hour before going to bed. This can be hard for a lot of people especially if it’s their way of unwinding after a long day. Another thing that people can do is put their devices in a different room or put it in their room where they can’t get it in bed so they aren’t tempted to go on their phones in their room.(hbr.org). They can also watch a show before they go to bed but limit how much they watch or they can read which helps a lot of people sleep.