Health
Sleep experts sound alarm on late night screen time: How your phone could be sabotaging your rest
- More than half of Americans use their phones within an hour before bedtime, according to the National Sleep Foundation.
- Experts recommend shutting off devices earlier for better quality of sleep.
- Breaking the habit involves redesigning nighttime routines by replacing screen time with activities like reading or spending time with family.
Like many of us, Jessica Peoples has heard the warnings about excessive screen time at night. Still, she estimates spending 30 to 60 minutes on her phone before going to sleep, mostly scrolling through social media.
“Recently, I’ve been trying to limit the amount,” says Peoples, a discrimination investigator with the state of New Jersey. “I do notice that how much time I spend affects how long it takes to fall asleep.”
Over half of Americans spend time on their phones within an hour of going to sleep, according to a survey by the National Sleep Foundation. That’s the very latest we should shut off devices, experts say.
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The brain needs to wind down long before bedtime to get the restorative deep sleep that helps the body function, said Melissa Milanak, an associate professor at Medical University of South Carolina specializing in sleep health.
James Walter uses a phone at home in the Queens borough of New York, on April 7, 2021. Sleep scientists long ago established that insufficient sleep is linked with poor health outcomes, anxiety, obesity and several other negative effects. The research is equally conclusive that smartphones are particularly disruptive to the circadian clock that regulates sleep and other hormones. (AP Photo/Jessie Wardarski, File)
“You wouldn’t take a casserole out of the oven and stick it right in the fridge. It needs to cool down,” Milanak said. “Our brains need to do that too.”
Upending your bedtime routine may not be easy, but insufficient sleep has long been linked to anxiety, obesity and other negative outcomes. Research shows smartphones are particularly disruptive to the circadian clock that regulates sleep and other hormones.
“There are a million and one ways screens create problems with sleep,” said Lisa Strauss, a licensed psychologist specializing in cognitive behavioral treatment of sleep disorders.
The brain, she said, processes electric light — not just a smartphone’s much-maligned blue light — as sunshine. That suppresses melatonin production, delaying deep sleep. Even very little bright-light exposure in bed has an impact.
IT’S NOT JUST THE LIGHT THAT KEEPS YOU UP
Of course, doomscrolling through the news, checking emails or being tempted by ever more tailored videos on social media has its own consequences.
So-called “technostress” amps you up — possibly even triggering the brain’s flight or flight response. And algorithms designed to be engaging compel many social media users to scroll longer than they intended.
“Now it’s 30 minutes later, when you wanted to watch a couple videos and fall asleep,” Milanak said.
Though much of the scientific research on online media focuses on adolescents and young adults, Strauss said most of her clients struggling with insomnia are middle-aged. “People go down these rabbit holes of videos, and more and more people are getting hooked,” she said.
HOW TO BREAK THE HABIT
The issue is not just curtailing phone use in bed, but phone use at night. That means redesigning your routine, particularly if you use your phone as a way to decompress.
It helps to create replacement behaviors that are rewarding. An obvious contender is reading a physical book (e-readers are better than phones but still cast artificial light). Milanak also suggests using that hour before bed to take a warm bath, listen to a podcast, make school lunches for the next day, spend time with family or call a relative in another time zone.
“Make a list of things you like that never get done. That’s a great time to do stuff that doesn’t involve screens,” she said. Using a notepad to write down the to-do list for the next day helps keep you from ruminating in bed.
Do those activities in another room to train yourself to associate the bed with falling asleep. If there’s no other private refuge at home, “establish a distinct microenvironment for wakefulness and sleep,” Strauss said. That could mean sitting on the other side of the bed to read, or even just turning the other way around with your feet at the headboard.
Finally, sequester the phone in another room, or at least across the room. “Environmental control can work better than will power, especially when we’re tired,” she said.
WHAT IF STOPPING DOESN’T FEEL REALISTIC?
There are ways to reduce the harm. Setting the phone on night mode at a scheduled time every day is better than nothing, as is reducing screen brightness every night. Hold the phone far from your face and at an oblique angle to minimize the strength of the light.
Minimize tempting notifications by putting the phone on do not disturb, which can be adjusted to allow calls and messages from certain people — say, an ailing parent or a kid off at university — to go through. But none of these measures give you carte blanche to look at whatever you want at night, Strauss said.
She also recommended asking yourself why checking social media has become your late-night reward.
“Think about the larger structure of the day,” she said. Everyone deserves solitary moments to relax, but “maybe be more self-indulgent earlier so you have what you need.”
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Sitting next to a window may help people with type 2 diabetes control their insulin levels, according to new research.
The study, published in Cell Metabolism, found that exposure to natural light — even indoors next to a window — changes how the body processes glucose and uses energy.
People in Western societies spend 80% to 90% of their time under artificial lights, which are much dimmer and less dynamic than sunlight, the researchers noted. Natural daylight is a powerful cue for the body’s internal clock, also known as the circadian rhythm.
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The body’s internal clock influences many processes, including digestion, hormone release and metabolism, according to research. When it gets out of sync, it can worsen insulin resistance and blood sugar control, which are two of the main issues caused by type 2 diabetes.
Typical lighting in homes and offices is much dimmer and lacks the biological signals provided by natural daylight. (iStock)
To test the effects of daylight on blood sugar, scientists recruited 13 adults with type 2 diabetes. Each person spent two separate 4.5-day periods in a controlled office setting, according to a press release.
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In one period, they worked in front of large windows with natural daylight streaming in. In the other period, participants worked in the same room with the windows covered and were exposed only to typical indoor lighting.
Daylight isn’t a replacement for medication or traditional management strategies like diet and exercise, the researchers noted.
Everyone ate similar meals, followed the same schedule and continued their usual diabetes medications in both conditions.
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While average blood sugar levels didn’t differ drastically between the two conditions, people spent more time in the healthy glucose range when they were exposed to natural daylight — their blood sugar fluctuated less and stayed within a desirable range for a greater portion of the day.
Participants who were exposed to daylight burned more fat and fewer carbohydrates, a metabolic pattern linked to better blood sugar regulation. (iStock)
Exposure to natural light also affected metabolism. In daylight, participants burned more fat and fewer carbohydrates for energy.
Muscle biopsies and laboratory tests further showed that the genes responsible for the body’s cellular clocks were more synchronized under natural light conditions, the study revealed.
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Better alignment of these genes can improve nutrient processing and how cells respond to insulin, the researchers concluded.
Sitting near windows or spending more time outdoors could support diabetes management alongside standard treatments, researchers say. (iStock)
However, daylight isn’t a replacement for medication or traditional management strategies like diet and exercise, according to the team.
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The study did have some limitations, including that the group of patients was small. The researchers cautioned that larger studies are needed to confirm these results and determine how much natural light exposure is optimal.
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“This study also highlights the often unnoticed impact of the built environment on our health, and raises further concerns about the prevalence of office environments with poor (natural) daylight access,” the researchers noted.
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For most people, heartburn is an occasional annoyance and source of temporary discomfort. But for some, chronic heartburn can lead to more dangerous conditions — potentially even pre-cancerous ones.
About 10% of people with chronic gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) will develop Barrett’s esophagus, a condition where the lining of the lower esophagus is replaced with abnormal cells that are more prone to cancer, according to medical experts.
Some studies have shown that among those with Barrett’s esophagus, between 3% and 13% will go on to develop cancer, but most will not.
POPULAR SLEEP POSITIONS COULD BE DAMAGING YOUR NERVES, ACCORDING TO EXPERTS
When acid reflux becomes dangerous
“Your stomach is designed to handle acid. Your esophagus is not,” Dr. Daryl Gioffre, a Florida-based gut health specialist and certified nutritionist, told Fox News Digital.
About 10% of people with chronic acid reflux will develop Barrett’s esophagus, a condition where the lining of the lower esophagus is replaced with abnormal cells that are more prone to cancer. (iStock)
“With reflux, the danger is not the burn in the chest or throat — the real danger is the constant backflow of acid traveling the wrong way.”
In most people, the lower esophageal sphincter — which Gioffre refers to as the “acid gate” — keeps acid in the stomach, which is lined with thick mucus and specialized cells designed to protect it.
“With reflux, the danger is not the burn in the chest or throat — the real danger is the constant backflow of acid traveling the wrong way.”
“But when the gate gets weak, it relaxes or stays slightly open, and acid slips back up the wrong way,” he said. This “gate” can weaken with magnesium deficiency, high stress, alcohol, poor sleep, dehydration and late-night snacking, all of which can disrupt healthy digestion.
When acid hits the esophagus, it irritates tissue that was never designed to withstand it, according to the doctor.
“Every time acid comes back up the wrong way, it injures the lining like a slow chemical burn,” said Gioffre, who is also the author of “Get Off Your Acid” and “Get Off Your Sugar.” Over time, that irritation erodes the lining, drives inflammation and can change the cells.
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“These new cells are no longer normal esophageal cells — they begin to shift into cells that look more like stomach lining, because those cells can tolerate the acid,” the doctor said. “That change is called metaplasia, or Barrett’s esophagus.”
Once the cells start changing, the risk of further mutation goes up. If that process continues, Gioffre warned, it can progress to dysplasia, which is the stage right before esophageal cancer.
Some studies have shown that among those with Barrett’s esophagus, between 3% and 13% will go on to develop cancer. (iStock)
“So the real danger is not the heartburn you feel,” he summarized. “It is the repeated acid exposure forcing the esophagus to adapt in ways it was never designed to. Fixing reflux at the root stops this entire cascade before those cellular changes begin.”
Men at higher risk
Men generally have a higher risk because they burn through magnesium faster, tend to carry more visceral fat pushing upward on the stomach, eat heavier meals and snack late at night, Gioffre cautioned. These activities all weaken the acid gate and shut down healthy digestion.
THE BREAD THAT KEEPS THINGS MOVING IN THE BATHROOM — AND DOCTORS SAY IT REALLY WORKS
“Eating within three hours of lying down almost guarantees the stomach does not empty, and that is one of the biggest drivers of nighttime reflux,” he said. “On top of that, men often ignore symptoms, or mask them with PPIs and antacids instead of fixing the root cause.”
All of these factors contribute to a “perfect storm” for chronic inflammation and long-term damage, according to Gioffre.
Warning signs
There are certain red flags that indicate when acid reflux has gone beyond an occasional annoyance and has progressed to constant and chronic.
“If that burn becomes more frequent or more intense, or starts showing up even when you have not eaten, your body is waving a giant warning flag,” Gioffre said.
Difficulty swallowing, a feeling that food is “stuck,” chronic hoarseness, a constant cough, throat clearing or the feeling of a lump in the throat are all indicators that the acid is moving upward into areas it should never reach. (iStock)
Difficulty swallowing, a feeling that food is “stuck,” chronic hoarseness, a constant cough, throat clearing or the feeling of a lump in the throat are all indicators that the acid is moving upward into areas it should never reach, according to the doctor.
EXPERT WARNS OF ‘SILENT EPIDEMIC’ THAT PUTS MEN’S HEALTH AT SERIOUS RISK
“Ulcers in your throat, or even in your mouth, are another sign that the acid is doing real damage,” he warned.
“Another major warning sign is when reflux goes from something you notice occasionally to something you feel every day or every night, or when PPIs and antacids stop helping,” Gioffre said. “That usually means the lining is irritated and eroded, and may already be changing on a cellular level.”
Nighttime reflux is the most dangerous because the acid sits on the esophagus for hours, causing deep inflammation and long-term cellular changes, the doctor said. (iStock)
Unexplained weight loss, vomiting blood and black stools are all serious symptoms that demand immediate attention, the doctor added.
“The bottom line: When reflux becomes consistent, chronic and starts impacting swallowing, your voice, or the tissues in your mouth or throat, it is no longer just a nuisance,” Gioffre told Fox News Digital. “That is the point where the esophagus may be moving toward a precancerous state, and men especially cannot afford to wait on it.”
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3 key ways to prevent reflux
Gioffre shared the following essential steps to preventing acid reflux and improving digestive health.
No. 1: Follow the 3-hour rule
“Stop eating three hours before bed,” the doctor recommends. “When you eat late, the stomach does not empty, pressure builds and the acid gate relaxes, guaranteeing that acid travels upward into your esophagus while you sleep.”
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Nighttime reflux is the most dangerous because the acid sits on the esophagus for hours, causing deep inflammation and long-term cellular changes, he warned. “This one rule alone can dramatically lower acid reflux and cancer risk.”
No. 2: Strengthen the acid gate
When stomach acid is low, the lower esophageal sphincter loses its tone, allowing acid to travel upward instead of staying in the stomach, Gioffre said.
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“The fastest way to tighten that gate is to build your mineral reserves, especially magnesium,” he said.
The best way to do this is to load up on magnesium-rich foods like avocado, spinach, pumpkin seeds, chia seeds, quinoa and almonds, and consider adding a clean magnesium supplement.
No. 3: Remove or neutralize daily triggers
The fastest way to protect your esophagus, according to Gioffre, is to eliminate or neutralize the foods and habits that weaken the acid gate and push acid the wrong way.
For people who can’t fully eliminate these triggers, certain habits can help neutralize their impact by reducing acid strength and pressure before it reaches the esophagus.
The doctor recommends cutting back on alcohol and caffeine, both of which relax the acid gate and increase the risk of acid reflux. (iStock)
“Drinking most of your water earlier in the day helps, because pounding water at night stretches the stomach and relaxes the acid gate, making it much easier for acid to flow the wrong way once you lie down,” he said.
He also recommends cutting back on alcohol and caffeine, both of which relax the acid gate instantly.
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Some other major triggers that fuel the reflux cycle include chocolate, spicy foods, garlic, onions, sugar, ultraprocessed foods and heavy nighttime meals, according to the doctor.
“These foods and habits weaken the lower esophageal sphincter, drive up inflammation and push pressure upward,” he said. “That’s exactly how a little heartburn turns into chronic reflux, and slowly causes the kind of damage that puts the esophagus at risk for cancer.”
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