“Using your smartphone right before bed is bad for your sleep.”
If you feel like you’ve heard this phrase countless times, it’s for the very good reason that it happens to be true. Study after study has demonstrated that exposure to the blue light emitted by smartphone screens (and other electronic devices such as tablets and computers) shortly before bedtime interferes with the production of melatonin, which is the hormone that makes you feel sleepy. More often than not, therefore, using your smartphone before bed leads to a poor night’s sleep, which in turn can contribute to a host of other mental and physical health issues.
To avoid this problem, most experts recommended not using your phone at all for at least 30 minutes, and preferably up to two or three hours, before you go to bed. However, although this is certainly good advice, it’s often easier said than done, particularly in our current COVID-19 era, when people are relying on phones for both work and socializing more than ever before.
Fortunately, if you do find yourself needing to use your smartphone shortly before bedtime, there are steps you can take to limit its impact on your sleep. Some of the best tips to try include:
Using nighttime mode or other built-in functions.
Did you know that many smartphone models offer built-in features that reduce the amount of blue light your device emits? Over the last few years, major tech companies have worked to incorporate features like these that help people create and maintain healthier relationships with their devices.
For example, on iOS devices, Apple offers a built-in software feature called Night Shift, which automatically adjusts the display to filter blue light from screens and feature warmer colors instead, which are easier on the eyes at nighttime. Night Shift will turn on by default between sunset and sunrise, but you can also enable the function manually or choose set times for Night Shift to turn on and off.
Using a blue-filtering app.
If the device you use doesn’t have a feature like Night Shift, there are plenty of third-party software and app solutions that can help you out. One of the best options available is a plug-in called f.lux, which is available free of charge for a number of different platforms.
f.lux essentially operates in the same way as Night Shift. As the sun sets, the software gradually turns down the blues, leaving you with a softly reddish-tinted screen. Simply tell f.lux what kind of ambient lighting you have and where you live, and the program will automatically adjust your device’s display.
The f.lux website also offers a helpful, continually updated round-up of different devices and how much blue light they emit, as well as an analysis of how effective other anti-blue products and apps actually are at filtering blue light.
Using blue-blocking glasses.
If using built-in software or a third-party app isn’t an option for you, you might want to check out blue-blocking glasses. These often orange-tinted glasses are designed using special coatings that filter out blue light, and are available at many different price points, from inexpensive to high-end.
One bonus of using glasses instead of a software solution is that glasses can filter out blue light from any source around you, not just the screen you happen to be looking at, so they can be a good option if your home or office features other blue-light-emitting sources.
Applying a physical screen filter.
To help solve the blue light problem, some companies make blue-filtering covers that you can apply directly to the screen of your device. Options are available for mobile devices as well as desktop or laptop monitors, and have the added advantage of acting as a screen protector as well as a blue light filter.
The one downside of using a physical screen filter, however, is that many users find it most convenient to apply the filter and leave it on the device permanently rather than taking it on and off. This can detract from the display’s performance during the day, or at other times when you actually want to let blue light through.
Finding non-visual or non-screen-based workarounds.
To truly limit the impact that smartphone use before bed can have on your sleep, another option is to find ways to do what you need to do that don’t involve using your smartphone; or, at least, that don’t involve you looking at the screen.
For example, if you need to read a document for work before you go to bed, try printing out a hard copy instead of reading it on your phone or laptop, or check out one of the growing number of apps that will turn text into audio and read your document to you.
If you often like to watch a show on your device in the evening, why not try listening to a podcast as a screen-free alternative. And if you plan to have a video call with a friend or colleague, try checking in with them via an old-fashioned phone call instead.