If you are sleeping with your phone under your pillow or just out of reach on a night stand, you are like the 45% of cell phone owners who need to have their mobile devices close at hand.
The reasons for this are numerous, falling asleep while waiting for a call or text, using as an alarm clock, fear of missing a text message, or waiting for someone to post on their social media profile page. Although many head off to bed with the best of intentions, the simple truth is that keeping your cell-phone turned and near you while you try to sleep can be hazardous to your health. Consider these harms of sleeping near your cell-phone.
The health risks of cell phones are murky: There’s been no research that proves cell phone use causes cancer; in fact, the links to any kind of health risk aren’t yet clear. In general, cell phones are said to give off such small doses of electromagnetic radiation—which is also emitted from X-rays and microwaves and can lead to tumor growth in high amounts—that they’re perfectly safe to handle. Still, research warned that usage may be possibly carcinogenic to humans, especially in children, whose scalps and skulls are thinner than adults’, and more vulnerable to radiation. So if you’re at all worried about the possible cancer risk, try to text instead of call, hold the phone away from your ear, or use an earpiece or the speakerphone setting as much as possible and definitely don’t sleep with the phone next to your head.
Setting Your Room on Fire: Although you might not believe it at first, your little cell-phone has enough power to spark and cause a fire very easily. If you are sleeping with the mobile device under your pillow, a spark could easily ignite those dry materials and start a fire right under your nose. Incompatible phone batteries can easily spark, and if the phone is near flammable materials, a fire could ignite quite easily while you are sound asleep.
Reduction in a Sound Sleep: One of the challenges of having a turned on mobile device near you while sleeping is the slightest sounds can interrupt your sleeping pattern. In order for you to feel refreshed and rejuvenated each day, you need to get eight hours of uninterrupted sleep. When the mobile device is on next to you at night, you get awoken each time you receive an email, a text message, a chat request, a phone call, or when the phone is updating or downloading security features. Additionally, your cell-phone is emitting what is called blue light at night. The blue light has been shown in studies to inhibit the bodies ability to produce melatonin, disrupting the circadian rhythms. These wavelengths emitted by your phone are similar to sunlight, so the body simply thinks during the evening that it is daytime instead. The best thing you can do is turn off mobile devices before bed to allow your body to wind down and get the appropriate amount of rest.
Derailing Brain Functions: Although you might think that you are getting the right amount of sleep each night, your brain was interrupted many times during the night from the radiation emitted from the cell-phone. The brain needs to go through several sleep cycles at night to help you to recharge and feel fresh the next day. When the blue light and all the noises associated with a cell-phone interrupt your sleep, you are in fact derailing the activity of the brain. Studies have been conducted with healthy test subjects who were exposed to Wi-Fi radiation for only 45 minutes, and they experience a significant decrease in energy levels compared to those who slept the night away without a cell-phone nearby. Invest in a small alarm clock and turn off your cell-phone at night so you have zero interruptions. You will awaken each morning more refreshed.
Daily Activities Suffer: When there is a small mobile device chirping, beeping, and ringing through the night, the brain and the body never get the rest they need. You have problems focusing on their work, feeling lethargic all day long and unable to concentrate on their work. Each night these same people go to bed even more tired, and wake up the following day worse off. This pattern repeats itself night after night because while your brain and your body is trying to get a full night sleep, the cell-phone is constantly causing a distraction and disrupting anyone in the room. The problem is compounded with those who have to commute long distances to and from work. The drive home at night can be especially troubling, and drivers lose focus and often fall asleep behind the wheel from exhaustion.
