Let’s be honest for a moment: how often do you bring your phone into bed with you? How many nights have you planned to turn in early, only to find yourself lying there scrolling through social media or replying to messages long after the lights are off?
Our smartphones play an important role in everyday life. They help us stay connected, informed, and entertained. But using your phone right before bed can quietly interfere with one of the most important parts of our well-being: sleep.
More than a third of Americans are not getting the recommended seven hours of sleep each night that the body and mind need to properly rest and recover. On top of that, another study by a panel of sleep experts found that about 90% of Americans use some type of electronic device within the hour before going to bed.
It’s probably safe to say that Americans aren’t the only ones struggling to balance phone use with healthy sleep hygiene. Technology offers many benefits, but it can also make it harder for our minds to fully wind down at night. The challenge is finding a way to enjoy the convenience of our devices while still allowing our brains to shift into sleep mode.
Long before smartphones existed, sleep expert Richard Bootzin from the University of Arizona said in 1972 that the bed should mainly be used for “sleep and sex.” Even though that advice was given decades ago, it may be even more relevant today.
Using your phone before bed can negatively impact sleep because it keeps the brain active when it should be slowing down. It’s natural to want to read something before going to sleep, but there is a clear difference between reading a physical book and scrolling through a phone. Even a quick check of notifications can stimulate the mind and trigger alert signals instead of helping the body prepare for rest.
Research from Harvard University sleep scientists examined how light-emitting electronic devices affect sleep. Their findings showed that using these devices before bed can extend the amount of time it takes to fall asleep.
Additional research from the University of California, San Francisco followed 600 participants over a 30-day period. The results suggested that higher levels of screen time, especially late in the evening, were linked to shorter sleep duration and reduced sleep quality.
Other studies have focused on the blue light emitted by phones, tablets, and laptops. This light can slow down the production of melatonin, the hormone that rises at night to regulate our sleep-wake cycle. As a result, device use before bed can affect both the duration and quality of sleep by interfering with the body’s natural rhythm.
There are several simple habits that can help reduce the impact of phone use on our sleep. Ideally, devices would be turned off a couple of hours before bedtime. While that may not always be realistic, many sleep experts suggest aiming for at least an hour without screens before bed. Even stepping away from your phone for 30 minutes can make a meaningful difference, as shown by research conducted in Shanghai.
In that study, half of the 38 participants avoided using their phones for the 30 minutes before bedtime for four weeks. By the end of the study, those participants experienced longer sleep duration and improvements in working memory.
Another helpful approach is to reduce exposure to blue light, which can be achieved by adjusting your phone’s display settings or using apps designed to filter blue light and shift the screen toward warmer tones. Some people also choose to wear amber-tinted glasses in the evening. Of course, one of the simplest alternatives is putting the phone down and reading a physical book before bed.
A key part of good sleep hygiene is giving the mind time to slow down before sleep. That’s where tools like Borran can help by offering calming sleep content designed to support relaxation and rest.
Looking at how we use our phones at night often reveals more about our overall self-care habits. Taking a moment to reflect on whether our evening routines are helping or hindering our sleep can make it easier to make small adjustments. Once we recognize those patterns, building healthier nighttime habits becomes much more achievable.
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