Lots of people are still bringing their phone to bed with them or keeping it within reach at night — despite the wealth of research showing how using these gadgets right before bedtime interferes with sleep patterns.
A large majority of respondents, 71 percent, said they usually sleep with or next to their mobile phone — and 3 percent of those people said they sleep with their device in their hand, 13 percent said they keep it on the bed and 55 percent leave it on the nightstand.
Thirty-five percent of respondents said their smartphone is the first thing they reach for when they wake up. Only 17 percent said they grab coffee as soon as they wake up, 13 percent said they go for their toothbrush and just 10 percent said they reach for their significant other.
A smartphone in a child’s bedroom may undermine good sleep habits even more than a TV. Going to bed with a smartphone at hand was also linked to later bedtimes than having a bedroom TV: 37 minutes later compared to 31 minutes
Three reasons not to sleep with your phone in your bed:
1. You may catch your bed on fire-Samsung Galaxy S4, which was under a pillow, had partially melted and scorched sheets and mattress, too. More specifically, it seems like a non-Samsung replacement phone battery was to blame: the phone’s instruction manual warns against.
2. Cell phones (and tablets, TVs, and other gadgets with LED screens) give off what’s known as blue light—a type that studies suggest can inhibit the production of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin and disrupt our circadian rhythms.
3. There’s been no research that proves cell phone use causes cancer. Still, the World Health Organization warned that usage may be possibly carcinogenic to humans, especially in children, whose scalps and skulls are thinner than adults’, and more vulnerable to radiation.
Sources: consumer-healthday.com, huffingtonpost.com, new.health.com