You CAN trawl Facebook in bed

August 10, 2016 tunisante

Studies have warned phones at night can cause obesity, sleep apnea
Artificial light supposedly stops brain from producing sleepy hormones
But a new study says if you get enough daytime sunlight it is ok

Mia De Graaf For Dailymail.com

Published:
10:59 EST, 10 August 2016

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Updated:
11:36 EST, 10 August 2016

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We’ve long been told not to use smartphones in bed.

For years, health officials have warned the glare of artificial light in a dark room causes a spate of medical issues, including sleep apnea, memory loss, and weight gain.

But for those who can’t resist some late night Instagram-trawling or Facebook-messaging, rejoice: it may not be so bad afterall.

A new study claims the detrimental effects of phone screens can be counteracted by spending time outdoors.

Enough natural sunlight during the day will sufficiently stabilize your body clock, according to the Swedish research team.

So it IS ok? Studies have warned phones at night disrupt our hormones causing weight gain and sleep disruption. But new research shows that can be counteracted by time in the sun

Previous studies have warned that the blue light from electronic devices confuses our body clock, which is also known as our ‘circadian rhythm’.

Light triggers our brains into believing we should be awake. The brain therefore stops producing melatonin, a hormone that makes us feel sleepy.

According to earlier studies, this can slow down crucial metabolic cycles, leading to weight gain.

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Even checking text messages during the night has been branded a dangerous activity.

In a new study from Uppsala University involving 14 young females and males, neuroscientists Christian Benedict and Frida Rångtell sought to investigate these claims.

‘Our main finding was that following daytime bright light exposure, evening use of a self-luminous tablet for two hours did not affect sleep in young healthy students’, Rångtell, a PhD student, said.

It means artificial light may not have as dramatic an impact on our hormones as previously claimed.

More excuse to get outside! Sunlight during the day keeps our body clocks in check

But that is dependent on a person’s light intake during the day, to ensure the body clock is regimented.

‘Our results could suggest that light exposure during the day, e.g. by means of outdoor activities or light interventions in offices, may help combat sleep disturbances associated with evening blue light stimulation,’ Benedict said.

‘Even if not examined in our study, it must however be kept in mind that utilizing electronic devices for the sake of checking your work e-mails or social network accounts before snoozing may lead to sleep disturbances as a result of emotional arousal.’