How technology negatively effects our sleep
Technology and the evolution of our sleep habits
Technology has evolved immensely over the last 300 years, starting its fast growth at the dawn of the industrial revolution in 1750. The period from 1750-1950 is where the steam engine and electricity were first developed and these inventions led to urbanization and mass production of goods, both of which led to even faster technological development during the following period: the digital age. The digital age started with the invention of the computer, which quickly became widely available to the masses. The internet followed in the 1990s and has become available to roughly 75% of the world population (billions of people use the internet on a daily basis). And now we all have the internet available to us at anytime in our pocket.
During the periods before the invention of electricity, fire light was our only way to see at night, which greatly impacted the tasks we could complete after sunset. This kept our sleep habits much more consistent. Go to bed with the sun and wake up with it. This was optimal for our circadian rhythm. With the invention of electricity, things changed drastically. We could now stay up with artificial lights and maintain more hours of productivity. This is what led to greater evolution of technology, more time meant more invention.
Which leads us to where we are today, the last 50 years have seen exponential levels of technological evolution that we have never experienced at such a high rate. All of the information in the world doubles every 10 seconds now with the invention of AI technology. Yet our bodies still can’t tell the difference between the stress produced by seeing a bear running towards you or the stress produced from scrolling on social media for hours. Both produce anxiety, one is much more necessary and helpful than the other.
With information, entertainment, and connection at the touch of our fingertip, available at all hours, you can probably guess that sleep habits have gotten even worse since the beginning of the digital era. We stay up later and later and now have a higher percentage of people working night shifts. Coincidently, depression, anxiety disorders, suicide, loneliness, and divorce rate have all gone up as well.
How technology may have improved our sleep
Now I’m not saying all technology is bad for our sleep. Air conditioners help keep us cool during the summer which enables us to fall asleep faster and stay asleep longer. And heaters help us stay warm during long winter nights. Both of these have drastically improved our overall comfort, and in some cases, our health and longevity. CPAP machines have helped those with sleep apnea improve their quality of life immensely.
And technologies that help improve our sleep are evolving year after year. New bed cooling technology takes air conditioning a step further by cooling your mattress and adjusting on the fly to help you get your best sleep. A new style of alarm clock, called a sunrise alarm, is making morning wake ups more natural and less stress inducing.
But the list of benefits of technologies effect on our sleep is much shorter than the list of negatives. New technologies are trying to mimic our natural patterns, which is like using a tanning bed instead of going outside, it’s not really the same thing.
How technology has negatively impacted our sleep
The first thing I think of when I think of technology is poor sleep, and there’s good reason for that. Like we discussed before, technology has allowed us to stay up later and later and has now even created shift work, both are major pitfalls of this technological innovation - long term night shift workers have a 52% increase in all cause mortality. Our productivity and innovative capabilities may be better, but the long term consequences on our health are great.
Blue light exposure tells our brain it’s daytime
Blue light, the wavelength emitted by cell phones, televisions, LED lights, and even stove clocks, tricks our body into think it is daytime. This may sound silly, but blue light is emitted from the sun during the day, it’s what helps regulate our circadian rhythm. This is why studies have shown when people who claim they are “night owls” go camping, they end up resetting their circadian rhythm to match the sunrise-sunset cycle. This is how we naturally slept for millions of years… but now blue light is allowing us to trick our bodies into staying up way later than ever before - on average the blue light can delay our circadian rhythm by 1.5 hours.
The blue light from the sun is good blue light exposure, but we can’t say the same about blue light exposure from technology. Nighttime exposure of blue light can suppress the release of melatonin, our bodies natural sleep hormone, which makes it very challenging to fall and stay asleep - no wonder insomnia and other sleep disorders are so common in the western world.
Technology can mentally and physically stimulate us before bed
From a psychological standpoint, the content we consume via social media or television can literally “suck us in” and cause us to stay up late, it’s literally addictive. Take TikTok for example, how easy is it to watch “just one more” video? It’s so easy that the “one more video” can turn into 20-30 minutes just like that. No wonder kids aged 15-18 have an average screen time of 7.5 hours per day… and children aged 11-14 now average 9 hours per day! And these statistics aren’t even including technology use during school! These are just entertainment stats. These kids are spending more than half of their awake hours on technology.
But in terms of sleep, this mental stimulation can physically stimulate us, leading to difficulty falling asleep. Have you ever noticed if you use your phone in bed right before going to sleep, your mind races? It’s this mental stimulation. We actually have to “wind down” from this mental stimulation to calm ourselves down. The issue is, technology is in every step of our lives, how can we wind down?
Behavioral and sleep timing issues
Have you ever heard of bedtime procrastination? It’s a new phenomenon. Technology has a MAJOR impact on this. Why go to sleep when you can watch "one more episode,” “one more video,” or “read a few more posts?” This procrastination of sleep is a vicious cycle. You procrastinate sleep, go to bed late and fall asleep slowly, you get poor sleep, you have an unproductive and anxiety ridden day, you want to “unwind and relax” by consuming some social media and TV, you procrastinate sleep… you see where I’m going?
This cycle of poor sleep quality can lead to anxiety disorders, insomnia, depression, nightmares, and aid in the development of other sleep and lifestyle related disorders.
How to get better sleep in a technology dominated world
But do not fret! We can combat some of these technological sleep disturbances! Luckily for us, technology can be turned off - and some technology can even be set on timers. Here are some ways that you can combat poor sleep caused by technology:
Wear blue light glasses after the sun sets
This was a game changer for me. I started with a cheaper pair about two years ago and instantly noticed a difference - I’m actually wearing that cheaper pair right now while writing this. I say cheaper pair because it’s cheaper due to the lower quality of it’s blue light blocking capabilities - it uses clear lenses to block blue light which is less powerful than orange lenses. I later upgraded to orange-lensed blue light blocking glasses and it was totally worth the upgrade.
I put them on after the sun sets and can see a dramatic difference in my ability to wind down and prepare for sleep. And all I have to do is where a pair of glasses! They really help negate the effect of blue light which allows our body to continue producing melatonin, making us feel sleepier. I put this as tip one because it is super simple and very affordable. This habit has been my most consistent for improving sleep since I first got a pair.
Use salt lamps and incandescent bulbs at night
Salt lamps and incandescent bulbs are dimmer and produce more of a red-orange hue than more commonly used LED bulbs, in the case of sleep, this is a huge advantage! They aren’t great for maximum visibility, but that’s the point, we want to be able to sleep and blue light is terrible for that!
Salt lamps and incandescent bulbs produce a very firelight-esque vibe, which is how we saw at night for thousands and thousands of years, by campfire. This firelight mimicry helps our primal brain remember that nighttime is for sleeping. This used in combination with blue light glasses is huge for creating a calming environment for sleep.
stop using tech 30-60 minutes before bed
Our first free piece of advice is to put the phone and TV remote down at least 30 minutes before bed, preferably 60 or more minutes before bed. This will help prevent that “bedtime procrastination” that we discussed earlier and can help us wind down naturally. You’re probably thinking, what do I do for an hour? Well, I have some good options for you!
Obviously, we don’t want to do anything that requires bright lights or gets our mind racing, but there are plenty of options that fall into this category. Reading is my number one suggestion, in physical book form of course (kindles are actually ok, too). Reading not only helps our mind wind down, but it actually helps our eyes get tired which makes it so much easier to fall asleep. I like to read right in bed, with a salt lamp for light, and read until my eyes can’t stay open any longer. At this point, I can fall asleep in 5-15 minutes and stay asleep all night long.
I also like to take a hot shower before bed to help calm down and feel clean before getting into bed. We all know there is nothing better than getting into a clean bed, so why not clean yourself first and make it that much better! And since you are clean, why not make a little love to your spouse or partner * insert winky face *. In all seriousness, having sex can release feel-good, relaxing chemicals in the body that promote more deep sleep. Why do you think all of the rappers are rapping about “putting her to sleep?” Again, back to in all seriousness, sex promotes better sleep quality, stress reduction, increased sleepiness, and physical relaxation; all of which are great for sleep!
Some other options to fill up your hour of no technology are: stretching or yin yoga, going for a walk (if you’re in the right neighborhood), meditation, prayer, quality time with your partner, sitting by a fire, reading to your kids, taking turns reading a book with your partner, etc. There’s really so many options of things you can do without technology, so go try a few and see if they help your sleep!
Use “sleep focus” features in the evening on your cellphone
Ironically, technology has some built in features to help us improve our sleep. Most smartphones now actually have a mode called “sleep focus” that tells the phone to silence notifications (you can choose to allow certain ones) and enable a blue light filter on the phone itself. These features help reduce blue light and the urge to check your phone for notifications. I use these every night after 8:00 pm and have become known as “unreachable" at night, but I take pride in this because I get great sleep when I put my phone down early.
Set up a nighttime routine to optimize sleep
This tip is probably the most important because we need to treat our nighttime routine the same way we treat our morning routine, I would actually argue that our nighttime routine is more important. Use the strategies above to create yourself a nighttime routine that you do consistently to promote more restful sleep. For example, here’s mine: the sun sets and I put my blue light blocking glasses on, 8:00 pm rolls around and my sleep focus cellphone feature turns on - I usually put my phone away at this point, too, I shower and brush my teeth around 9:00-9:30, then put the dogs to bed and get into bed ourselves, we may talk for a bit, maybe have “adult-time,” then we journal and read until we are ready for bed. It’s really that simple. Routines don’t have to be complex, they have to be consistent.
Conclusion
Technology has helped us make great advancements in so many areas of our lives, but it has also reduced the quality of our sleep. It is correlated with the increased instances of sleep disorders, higher divorce rates, and chronic illness - is there a connection? I think so. But there are things you can do to combat technology and improve your sleep. Apply the tips listed above and see your sleep go from terrible to restful in no time.
So, how is your sleep? Do you fall asleep fast and wake up feeling rested? Do you follow a similar routine? Let me know! Email me or contact me on facebook!
