Does Your Device Affect Your Sleep?
A Harvard study found that exposure to light suppresses the secretion of melatonin, a hormone that influences circadian rhythms. The researchers go on to say light at night is part of the reason so many people don't get enough sleep, this has been linked to increased risk of depression, as well as diabetes and cardiovascular problems.
So why are my computer experts going on about light at night and sleep cycles? what the..?
Well, your computers and devices certainly have their part to play in this little dilemma. From screens that are too bright at night to blue light exposure. We also care about our customers and thought this might be interesting and may even help you...
Whilst white light can suppress the secretion of melatonin, blue light at night does so more powerfully. Harvard researchers found that blue light suppressed melatonin for about twice as long which can seriously upset your sleep cycle.
Blue light is emitted from many sources but in particular, your devices and their screens e.g. computer displays, phones and tablets.
So what can you do about it?
Well luckily for you there are quite a few free tools which can be used to help reduce the blue light in your life, especially at night.
f.lux has been around for quite some time and is my personal go-to tool for the PC. It's easy to install, simple to set up and easy to configure (if you want to) and best of all, completely free!
Windows 10 Night Light
If your Windows 10 is up to date then you might find you already have this handy feature, here's a guide on how to use it:
Dark Reader is a browser extension that can be installed into many popular internet browsers such as Google Chrome, Firefox, Safari and Microsoft Edge. It's free and on-the-fly converts those bright white websites to black. Whilst this isn't necessarily proven to do anything we definitely notice that a lot less white light in our eyes certainly feels better and more relaxing to read.
iPhone & iPad - Night Shift
Apple introduced Night Shift on its iOS platform which enables your device to automatically dim and adjust colour temperatures to reduce both your overall light and blue light exposure.
Apple has also introduced a feature called Dark Mode, similar to Dark Reader it turns many websites from white to black making it easier on your eyes, this can also automatically enable for night time only.
Android devices
For newer model android phones and tablets there's the option of Dark Mode/Night light. Here's a great guide:
One final note, if you do have children with their own devices and would like to limit their overall exposure then you can use some pretty handy in-built tools.
Apple devices use Screen Time
Android devices use Family Link
We hope this helps, if you need a hand with any of the above don't hesitate to get in touch.
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