How Does Digital Technology Affect Your Sleep?

In this artificial intelligence era, the world is witnessing robust digital advancements transforming our lives and workplaces. Along with perks and comforts, the heavy reliance on electrical devices adversely affects mental and physical health. Due to excessive screen usage, the cases of depression and sleep deprivation have increased drastically. 

How is modern technology affecting our health, particularly sleep quality? In this article, we will evaluate the link between digital devices and insomnia and share tips for embracing technological advancements without deteriorating health. So read until the end. 

How Tech Disrupts Sleep

Based on scientific evidence, the following are negative effects of technology on sleep quality:

1. Suppressed Melatonin Production

Along with circadian rhythms, our sleep hormone melatonin is primarily stimulated by darkness. At night, our body produces more melatonin, resulting in uninterrupted and quality sleep. People with lower melatonin levels have difficulty falling asleep. 

When you continuously use digital devices, particularly after the evening, the production of this sleep hormone is significantly reduced. That is why people are prescribed melatonin-containing supplements and gummies containing cannabinol to treat sleep disorders. Remember that, along with light, multiple other factors suppress melatonin production, so it needs proper evaluation for suitable interventions. 

2. Disturbance of Circadian Rhythms

Circadian rhythms are the body’s internal clock that lets the brain differentiate between day and night. The brain gets sleepy after getting signals about night, while it comes to an alert state by the daytime signal. Blue light emitted from digital screens signals the brain about daytime. This is why nighttime scrolling results in circadian disruption. You face difficulty falling asleep or frequent awakenings with a disturbed internal clock.

3. Psychological Effects

Free access to social media platforms is causing mental stress in the form of Fear of missing out (FOMO). This is an anxious state where you desire to remain connected continuously with social media to get insight into others’ lives. This results in screen addiction, which deteriorates our mental health and emotional well-being.

According to a study,  excessive screen use is causing anxiety and depression, particularly in adults. Mental disorder directly causes poor sleep quality or worsens the symptoms of insomnia.

4. Lower Resilience to Stress

People who scroll the internet to stay updated continuously expose themselves to negative news from around the world. Once we get insight into shocking facts, we have to regulate our emotions. Constant exposure to negative news causes helplessness and sadness. 

Moreover, emotional stress causes poor sleep quality and results in frequent awakenings, restlessness, and difficulty falling asleep.

Tips to Maintain Adequate Screen Time and Sleep Quality

It is now clear that excessive technology usage adversely affects our health. However, it is not impossible to entirely refrain from modern technologies due to education or career objectives. You can still have sufficient sleep hours without depriving yourself of modern gadgets with little adjustments like:

• Keep a strict check on overall digital usage for a day apart from work, and set a time limit.
• Keep mobiles or other electronics away from your bedroom to minimize distractions at bedtime.
• Adopt natural sleep remedies, lavender aromatherapy, meditation etc. to minimize the effect of digital devices. 
• Turn off unnecessary notifications or fix any time of day to check them.
• Preferring relaxation activities like book reading, knitting, yoga, etc, instead of doom scrolling. 
• Have a fixed night routine even on Sundays to regulate the sleep-awake cycle. 

Bottom Line

Technology is a permanent part of our lives due its endless perks, like superior quality of life and high work efficiency. However, too much digital usage adversely affects mental health, causing stress, and sleep disorders. 

A balance between sleep hygiene and technology allows us to enjoy modern developments without health hazards. So, ensure you maintain quality sleep hygiene by following all the above-mentioned tips. This way, you can explore digital innovations without health issues.