How Technology Affects Sleep

Phones, computers, tablets, and televisions emit a blue light that suppresses the production of melatonin. This hormone controls your sleep/wake cycle. Reducing melatonin makes it harder to sleep and stay asleep. To make sure technology isn’t messing with your sleeping pattern, give yourself 30 minutes of technology free time before sleeping. Also falling asleep to the vision

Sleep is a huge part of our lives. On average, we need anywhere from 7-10 of sleep, depending on age. However, few people, especially students, actually get the amount of sleep they should be receiving every night. You might be wondering, its only a couple of hours, why is this a big deal? Actually, sleep deprivation can have a huge impact on your day. According to the article “The Cure for Brain Fog” by Toni Gerber Hope, “lack of sleep has such a profound effect on our brains, making us forgetful, unable to concentrate, grumpy, accident-prone or clumsy”. Anyone who has lost sleep has felt these symptoms and they occur even slightly if one gets less sleep than necessary. There are many diagnoses for sleep deprivation but I believe that the rising issue is technology.

Students are not getting enough sleep. There is either homework or after school activities keeping kids from getting the right amount of sleep they need. The author states that, most kids are going to bed at 10 p.m. or later on school nights, even though they have to get up early the next day. Changes can be made at school to adjust to students’ sleep patterns. Some ways schools can adjust to students’ sleep patterns is shifting the time to start later, giving less homework or less after school programs, schools could also end sooner.

In the article Are We Addicted to Technology, author Ms. Kleinman claims that we may be into our devices to much and has taken too much of our everyday lives. For people who constantly go into their devices, “ then you got the classic pattern of someone who’s in a fatigue cycle” says Dr. Ramlakhan, meaning people are addicted to technology so much, they have extreme tiredness. Dr. Ramlakhan works at the privately run nightingale Hospital, and what she has noticed is, many of her patients are in front of the screen all the time, even when they try to sleep. Another quote by Dr. Ramlakhan is “they go to bed but can’t sleep, or fall asleep exhausted and wake up tired.” Even when people have to sleep, they don’t...but instead they just go into

The sleep deprivation is caused by the stress of busy and hectic lives rather than electronic devices or other distractions. Oftentimes, the stress is brought on by countless advanced classes or overcrowded schedules. According to Bruni, “Smartphones and tablets aggravate the problem, keeping kids connected and distracted long after lights out. But in communities where academic expectations run highest, the real culprit is panic: about acing the exam, burnishing the transcript, keeping up with high-achieving peers.” Unfortunately, many of these teens are getting far under the necessary amount of sleep each night. Many of these kids are getting around five or so hours per night. This is far under the recommended time and is not enough to be properly rested let alone complete advanced

There is more use of technology now than there ever has been before. Technology can be great, but there are some issues that are not looked at cautiously, and they can have negative effects on the adolescent body. Adolescents are becoming adults, and there is not a more important time to get enough sleep so that the body can recover and grow as necessary. Studies are finding that cell phone use is harming adolescents ability to get adequate sleep on a nightly basis. The Centers for Disease Control found that adolescents need eight and a half to nine and a quarter hours of sleep every night, with the youngest adolescents needing towards nine and a quarter, and the older needing eight and a half (qtd. in Adams, Daly, and Williford). The use of cell phones up to one hour before bed time is greatly interfering with the sleeping schedules of adolescents (Adams, Daly, and Williford). Lack of sleep sounds like just a drowsy, unproductive school day, when in actuality lack of sleep over extended periods of time, and even one night, can cause great health issues presently as well as later in life. Just one bad night of sleep can cause drowsiness during the day. Getting behind the wheel of a car, while drowsy, can have the same repercussions as driving under the influence. The National Sleep Foundation survey found that about 60% of drivers have been drowsy while driving, and that a third

Generation Z is addicted to social media because it is the first thing they worry when they wake up. They pick up their phones to see what people posted in the morning, the afternoon, and the evening. Dr. Helen Driver, a somnologist (with means the study of sleep), explains, “The explosion of social media and people staying on devices for longer – and taking them to bed with them – is a huge problem”. Social media has effected Generation Z’s by sleep because the light is from the electronics which interferes with sleep. Not only does social media affect the quality of sleep but, the quantity of sleep too. The next morning, they only got a few hours of sleep and they do not feel well both physically and mentally. If someone has issues with turning off their electronic devices in the evening, then they should dim the lights or and turn the power off.

Sleep is something that is required by all human beings for survival. This crucial component of our daily lives is what keeps our minds and bodies from shutting down. Without a sufficient amount of sleep, an array of health related issues can arise. Not only is an overall feeling of tiredness, irritability and lack of concentration a concern, other factors can affect mortality including cardiovascular problems, an increase in anxiety and depression, as well as a risk for weight gain leading to obesity. There are many factors that can affect why people do not get a good night’s sleep. One of the major influences is that of the increased use of technology based devices. With the increasing desire to be connected to social media

In his article, “Kids With Bedroom Smartphones Sleep Less: Study,” Alan Mozes suggests that a smartphone within children's bedrooms could undermine good sleeping habits more than television has. Mozes supports his claim through exemplification. He uses the results of various researches conducted by well-known magazines or universities. The author's purpose was to inform parents of children with no restrictions using their phones in order to help create a better future for the children who have become dependent on smartphones in their daily lives.

In the past few years, cell phones and tablets have begun to take over people’s lives. Cell phones hold our entire lives on them, from what time we wake up in the morning to directions to get everywhere. People spend the majority of their lives on their cell phones, texting, tweeting, or even just playing games. Not only do these devices effect our social lives, but they also affect how we sleep at night and how much sleep we get. Sleep is very important in maintaining homeostasis and proper health, in order to function properly, “healthy adults need between 7-9 hours of sleep each night” (helpguide). If a person does not get the amount of sleep- they need, then they will become groggy and less efficient at work or school.

One thing that schools are doing that effects sleeping patterns is the overload of homework that is due the next day. Something that needs to be remembered is that this homework is also mixed with out-of-school activities. " 'More children are going to bed with TVs on, and there are more opportunities to stay awake, with more homework, the Internet and the

Students often complain about not getting enough sleep; this is usually accurate because many kids stay up until the late hours of the night doing homework.

Today, most research done on technology’s effect on sleep has been focused on how technology makes sleeping more difficult. Technology can become a distraction and keep your brain active as a result of using it before going to sleep. The National Sleep Foundation even discovered through a poll that “nine of 10 Americans reported

The hypothesis was if electronics are used for an hour before bed, then the person’s sleep pattern will change because the blue light emitted from an electronic device alters the amount of melatonin in your body which allows your body to know when to fall asleep. The data that follows proved the hypothesis.

The past 20 years have undeniably been witness to continuously, and unabated change in many aspects of our individual lives. One of the major changes that I believe has encouraged our wakefulness is the rise in technological advancement. Our textbook explains how the light bulb is at fault for our decreasing sleep time, and now things such as the Internet, cable TV, and cell phones seem to be keeping us awake at night. I certainly have found myself surfing the internet, watching television, or scrolling down my apps on my cellphone “for one more minute” right before I go to sleep, far too many times to count. All of these unhealthy before bedtime rituals involve light, a deterrent of our much-needed slumber. In terms of societal changes, I always seem to relate 20 years ago to “simpler times,” maybe because I was only a child then, but comparing it to today everything seems to go at a much faster speed now, almost as if there isn’t enough hours in the day to accomplish our “to- do list” which is why we have leaned towards decreasing our sleep time in order to get more accomplished. 20 years ago we did not have all of this technology flooding our everyday lives, people did not care about posting to Facebook or catching up on a reality show you have to watch all 12 episodes in one sitting, or text messaging every waking moment of our day. 20 years ago the day consisted of going to work in order to provide for the family, getting home in time for dinner, and tucking yourself