It’s not news that a good night’s sleep can help increase productivity. However, our constantly connected lifestyles aren’t exactly conducive to this.
Sleep deprivation can have a major impact on your overall health, energy level, and focus.
While checking your email (or the news or Facebook) right after your head hits the pillow might make you feel as if you are getting the most out of every day, the potentially negative effects on your circadian rhythm can ultimately have the opposite effect. If you believe you’re getting enough sleep, but still find yourself fatigued during the day, blue light exposure is likely the culprit.
What Is Blue light?
Blue light is a type of light that tells our bodies to be awake. We absorb it through our skin and eyes. It also causes the pineal gland to cease melatonin production. While many people think of melatonin as a supplement sold at health food stores and pharmacies, it’s actually a hormone our bodies produce naturally.
Where Does Blue Light Come From?
The source of blue light is pretty much everything. While most people associate it with electronics such as phones, computer monitors, televisions, etc, the biggest source of blue light is something we cannot avoid entirely—the sun.
Benefits Of Blue Light
Blue Light can help improve symptoms of depression, boost metabolism and promote wakefulness. It can also help clear up acne and some other skin conditions. While blue light exposure at night can be detrimental, it’s essential to expose yourself during the day.
If you find you are having trouble waking up in the morning, don’t hit the snooze button. Get out of bed and open your curtains. Let the light in! Better yet, get out of bed and exercise outdoors. Exercising first thing in the morning also has numerous benefits.
Exposing yourself to blue light is also a great hack to get over that mid-day slump at work. A 2013 study even showed that a combination of blue light exposure and caffeine increased reaction time and working memory. So, instead of heading to the kitchen for a 3:00 pm jolt of coffee, take a brisk walk around the sunny side of the block. Avoid wearing sunglasses. Then treat yourself to a refreshing iced tea or green tea instead of coffee, so you aren’t wired later in the evening.
Avoiding Blue Light
After the sun sets, it’s ideal to avoid as much blue light as possible. This means its best to stop watching television in bed. But we all know that just isn’t realistic for everyone. So, if you have a tendency to fall asleep to the television, make sure you use the sleep timer function. Cable boxes also emit blue light, so see if it is possible to turn off the clock function or switch the box out. Worst case scenario (and it’s not pretty), cover the glow with duct tape.
Another way to avoid blue light is to purchase blue light free bulbs, such as Lighting Science Goodnight Sleep Bulbs. Use these throughout your entire home, or at the very minimum in your bedroom and bathroom.
Consider wearing blue light blocking glasses during the evening hours such as Swannies. If you already wear prescription or reading glasses, Lensabl can put blue light blocking lenses into your existing frames.
And if you can’t quite put your devices down at night, Night Mode can reduce some, but not all blue light on iPhones. Another option is the F.lux app, which also works on your laptop. It’s free to download.
