Is It Dangerous To Sleep With Your Cell Phone?

is it dangerous to sleep with your cell phone? Is your phone the last thing you look at before you sleep and the first thing you reach for in the morning? Do you instinctively check your phone when you wake up in the middle of the night?

According to research by SK Adams, Daly, and Williford, in America, 90% of young people (18 to 29 years old) in the U.S. sleep with their phones on or next to their beds. This figure drops to 70% for adults aged 30 to 49 and 50% for those aged 50 to 64.

It’s fair to say that many of us are guilty of using our phones too close to bedtime, but is it dangerous to sleep with your cell phone? If you regularly wake up feeling tired and groggy, your phone could be the culprit.

In this blog post, we look at why you shouldn’t sleep with your phone next to you and how to break the cycle of checking, reading, and responding to messages after lights out.

Why You Shouldn’t Sleep Next to Your Phone (or Use It Before Bed)

Research suggests a link between using your phone before bed and having a bad night’s sleep. Here are 3 reasons why sleeping with your phone could stop you from getting a full forty winks.

1. Stimulates Your Mind

It’s not just blue light that interrupts your sleep. Research has found that insomnia rates have risen with increased phone use among the general population.

Consider how you interact with your device. Phones are a boundless source of information, which can provoke a state of arousal and alertness.

That stimulation may make it hard to fall and stay asleep. The interactive nature of phones they require active control, may worsen matters.

Some evidence suggests nighttime phone usage and other interactive devices like video games have a more pronounced effect on sleep than passive nighttime screen activities, such as watching TV.

2. May Pose a Fire or Burn Risk

Though rare, only arising in isolated incidents, there’s a risk of your phone’s battery catching fire. A fire in bed or a phone explosion can cause significant physical harm.

Research has found that burning or overheating batteries have caused several second-degree burns. Second-degree burns may cause symptoms like:

Blistering
Pain
Redness
Swelling

Samsung recalled one million Galaxy Note7 phones in 2016 because of the risk of severe burns.

3. Using Your Phone in Bed Interrupts Your Natural Sleep Cycle

Your phone is one of many devices with an LED screen that emits a ‘blue light’. This type of light wave is harmful at night because it can trick your body into thinking it’s still daytime.

It affects your body’s natural production of melatonin, the hormone that tells your body it’s time for sleep.

So, it’s no surprise that looking at your phone after dark can make it harder for you to drop off. Exposure to blue light can also affect how much time you spend in the REM stages of sleep.

This is when your most vivid dreams occur as your brain sorts through what you’ve done that day and commits things to memory.

Over the long term, this kind of disruption to your sleep-wake cycle (also known as your circadian rhythm) can leave you feeling run-down and vulnerable to illness.

4. Charging Your Phone Next to Your Bed is a Fire Hazard

It makes sense to charge your phone while you’re not using it at night, but having it plugged in next to your bed or sofa bed could be a fire hazard.

Though it’s rare for a mobile phone to catch fire, the consequences of it happening while you’re asleep could be catastrophic.

Fire officers in London report dealing with 24 fires every week caused by chargers, cables, and batteries.

They’re talking specifically about lithium-ion batteries used in laptops, phones, and other portable electronic devices.

They have this advice for you when charging your phone:

Use the charger that came with your phone, and if you need to replace it, use one recommended by the manufacturer.
Do not leave your phone on charge past its charge cycle. In other words, when it’s finished charging, unplug it.
And finally, never cover your device while it’s charging, or you risk it overheating.

5. Using Your Phone in Bed Can Make You More Alert

There was a time when people fell asleep reading a book, but today you’re more likely to find them watching Netflix in bed or scrolling through their social media feeds.

Unlike watching TV, where you’re a passive viewer, using your phone requires you to be engaged. This kind of stimulation can make it harder for you to fall asleep and stay asleep.

That vicious cycle of ‘check, read, and respond’ can tempt you to look at your phone just as you’re about to fall asleep. This puts you on high alert—worried that you might miss a call or a notification.

A Word From GetMe Treated

Is it dangerous to sleep with your cell phone? Having your phone nearby may seem convenient, but it can significantly disrupt your sleep quality and pose potential dangers.

If you often wake up feeling unrested, consider adjusting your bedtime routine to limit phone use.