Electronic Devices Keep You Up at Night

Question

Electronic devices produce blue light. Blue light is short-wavelength enriched light that has been proven to slow the production of your natural melatonin release. Blue light can also affect the quality of sleep you are getting. Children are most affected by the lack of sleep from blue light, because their brains are still developing.

I found this when researching issues that can affect sleep. I found numerous other articles that also supported this claim. This article was written by Danielle pacheco and medically approved by Kimberly trong.

Comments

I thought your fact check was really good. I thought you provided a great source to go with the claim. The source provided very helpful evidence to why using electronic devices at night isn't good for someone's health, the article also provided tips on how to solve this issue which I thought was a great addition to the article.

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I agree with this fact check and appreciate the explanation, however it would've been good to know a few more of the other articles you found that prove this claim just to add extra supports. I liked how you went into more than just whether it was right or wrong but gave an example.

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I like how you have multiple sources have proven that using electronics before bed can make it harder to fall asleep. This is because the blue light emitted from screens reduces the body's natural production of melatonin, the hormone that regulates sleep.

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This is a good claim due to the way its being backed up and the evidence that was brought into your claim with your sources good job!

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I agree with this statement that electronic devices can disrupt sleep patterns due to the blue light and how it stimulates our brain making us more alert and awake. The article provided was clear and had good details to support the statement. A clear understanding on the science behind how it affects us and ways how we can prevent technology disrupting our sleep routine.

Answer 1

It is true that blue light can disrupt our natural circadian rhythms, though the title of your post could be misleading, as “electronic devices keep us up at night”, could be interpreted as an issue with phone addiction or the EMFs could disrupt our sleep. 

The source you used to find these facts is reliable. It tells us that healthy adults follow a 24 hour sleep wake cycle, and that, “when the sun rises in the morning, your body produces cortisol, a hormone that makes you feel awake and alert. As daylight fades, the body releases another hormone, melatonin, that produces feelings of sleepiness”, and that devices like computers and phones emit blue light, which has been proven to “reduce or delay the natural production of melatonin in the evening and decrease feelings of sleepiness. Blue light can also reduce the amount of time you spend in slow-wave and rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep, two stages of the sleep cycle that are vital for cognitive functioning” (Sleep Foundation). Blue light is helpful to wake us up in the morning, and can “boost attention, reaction times, and mood” (Harvard Health). It is true that spending time on devices before bed increases the time it takes us to fall asleep, and children are especially susceptible to sleep problems stemming from using devices with blue lights before bed. 

Additionally, “Harvard researchers and their colleagues conducted an experiment comparing the effects of 6.5 hours of exposure to blue light to exposure to green light of comparable brightness. The blue light suppresses melatonin for about twice as long as the green light and shifted circadian rhythms by twice as much (3 hours vs. 1.5 hours)” (Harvard Health). 

https://www.sleepfoundation.org/how-sleep-works/how-electronics-affect-sleep

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side

Answer 2

I agree with the author who posted the article as well as the author of this post who added detail information. I feel like everyone has first hand experience with the blue light an electronic device emits which was mentioned in the article. Off my experience I notice when I use my phone before bed I have a difficult time finding sleep and tend to stay up later than and I want to. I found this article from UCLA health which is a well known reputable source for information and it backs the claim the author of the article makes. https://www.uclahealth.org/news/article/are-electronic-devices-impacting-your- sleep. Kimberly Truong who helped collaborate on the article is also a reputable source and is a fair writer who shares her findings and wants to let the world know the results of those findings.

Answer 3

After doing some research this claim seems to be true and it looks like the source that is provided is trustworthy. I found a source from Piedmont health that also mentions how the blue light that is emitted from electronic screens does slow down the production of melatonin ."When people are exposed to blue light, the brain holds off on releasing melatonin because the light stimulates the brain." This source also mentions how a lack of sleep can affect the way the brain is functioning which gives you chronic fatigue, lack of focus, and inability to concentrate. So overall this claim seems to be true.

https://www.piedmont.org/living-real-change/using-electronic-devices-before-bed-can-ruin-sleep#:~:text=Research%20says%20yes.,laptops%2C%20have%20the%20same%20effect.

Answer 4

The claim that exposure to electronic devices keeps you up at night, appears to be true. Via many trustworthy sources, I have found that the natural production of melatonin is effected due to late night exposure to blue light, and can even cause an "Interruption of the circadian system..."

https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/blue-light-effects-on-your-eyes-sleep-and-health/2022/08#:~:text=How%20does%20blue%20light%20affect,sleep%20disorders%2C%20and%20cognitive%20dysfunctions.

https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/block-blue-light-to-sleep-better#effects-of-blue-light

Answer 5

After doing research I have found that this claim is true. I found in an article by Harvard Health that says blue light in the evening can disrupt your circadian rhythm and suppress melatonin production. This leads to the person having difficulty to fall asleep. Adding on, another article I found was published by UC Davis Health which talks about how blue light exposure from screens can boost alertness and elevate mood during the day. This therefore disrupts sleep patterns later in the night. Managing screen time correctly can help ones sleep quality.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side

https://health.ucdavis.edu/blog/cultivating-health/blue-light-effects-on-your-eyes-sleep-and-health/2022/08

Answer 6

It is largely the case that phones along with tablets thoroughly keep you awake because of blue light, some studies think that blue light stops your body's manufacture of melatonin so it is more difficult to sleep soundly. Kids' brains are susceptible to damage from blue light since their brains are still developing, and both Harvard Medical School and PNAS show that a great deal of blue light prior to sleep is able to negatively affect the ability to go to sleep and get rid of REM sleep. But blue light is not the only thing about screens that affects sleep. It could depend on what people watch, how late they use screens, and bedtime habits also matter a lot. Even though the Sleep Foundation article is trustworthy and checked by doctors, Harvard Health and the American Academy of Pediatrics are better sources with more science to back them up. Experts say that to help with sleep problems, it is best to use blue-light filters, spend less time looking at screens before sleep, and go to sleep at the same time each night. I personally use a red light filter to cut all blue light before I go to sleep.

https://www.health.harvard.edu/staying-healthy/blue-light-has-a-dark-side
https://www.pnas.org/doi/full/10.1073/pnas.1418490112
https://publications.aap.org/pediatrics/article/138/5/e20162591/52634/Children-and-Adolescents-and-Digital-Media