Reader’s Digest International — August 2017

August• 2017 | 51

READER’S DIGEST

Sleep experts recommend against
bringing phones into the bedroom,
but this is unrealistic for adults who
use their phones as alarm clocks and
who want to feel connected to friends
through their devices. “Many peo-
ple have a feeling that
they are disconnected
from the real world if
their phone is not in
the bedroom,” Exel-
mans says. “It triggers
hypervigilance. You are
not completely at rest,
because you expect to
be contacted sometime
during the night. It’s the
fear of missing out.”
Donny Soh, 38, of Sin-
gapore, experienced this
phenomenon first-hand.
When his company
launched a new product
in 2016, he’d wake up at
all hours to see if any-
one had placed online
orders. “I would wake
up perhaps three to four
times per night,” says Soh, who admits
that an attitude change helped him re-
claim his slumber. “Regardless of how
awakeIamorhowoftenIcheckmy
phone, it doesn’t really affect the sales,
and since this realisation, sleep[ing]
gotmuchbetter.”
Thebluelightthatsmartphones
emit can also negatively impact sleep.
Blue light mimics daylight, so the
body is discouraged from producing

sleep-inducing melatonin at bedtime,

whichpromotesdrowsiness.“The

blue light emitted by mobile phones

inhibits melatonin output, telling

yourbodytostayawake,”Exelmans

says. Addinganappwithablue-light

filter can help.

If you’re unwilling

to part with your mo-

bile phone overnight,

minimise interruptions

and encourage sleep

by activating night-

time blackout periods,

so that no calls, emails,

texts or notifications get

through.

“Keep it on flight

mode, dim your screen

and place it on silent

mode,” Exelmans says.

“Or remove some apps:

Facebook, work email –

it discourages you from

spending time on it.”

Computers and TVs

emit the same blue light

that smartphones do.

Best to keep computers and TVs out of

the bedroom, and turn them off one to

two hours before bedtime. And if you

wake up in the middle of the night,

refrain from turning to a screen. Says

Exelmans, “Read a book, not a tablet.”

Put your feet up

Is your night-time slumber interrupted

by urgent bathroom visits? You may

have a little-known condition called

“The blue light

emitted by

mobile phones

inhibits

melatonin

output, telling

your body to

stay awake”