Wellness 25th May 2016 by Paula Lyne
This One Nighttime Habit Could Be The Reason You Feel Like Crap In The Mornings
Yup, we're guilty of it too.
You were in bed early, make-up off, fresh sheets and PJs on, but yet you still feel groggy AF the next morning.
If this sounds like your experience on the regular, it could be your late-night habits that are to blame. You’ve probably heard that at least one screentime-free hour before is key for helping your brain to shut down fully once you hit the hay, but if you’re not considering your Kindle Fire or reading tablet as a “screen” then you’re already in trouble.
Kindles, iPads and other eReading tools all emit blue light, which can have a significant effect on the levels of the sleep hormone melatonin in our bodies.
That’s according to a new Harvard study, which found that use of a light-emitting eReader before bed could “adversely impact overall health, alertness and the circadian clock.”
While some quiet reading time before bed is infinitely better for you than watching two hours of Netflix, all that blue light is most definitely going to infringe on your sleeping habits.
The solution? Either switch to a good ol’ paperback, or – if you do your reading on an iPad or a Kindle Fire – enable the blue light reduction filter.
Amazon’s version is called Blue Shade, while Apple’s is Night Shift (it’s also available on your iPhone, btw). Both features work as a filter to reduce the amount of blue light hitting your eyes.
As for your trusty phone, invest in a traditional alarm clock and move your phone out of your bedroom completely when you’re asleep. You might not wake up everytime your phone’s light switches on with alerts during the night, but rest assured your brain is registering all that disturbance.
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