E-readers tied to poor sleep

Using light-emitting tech devices, like smart phones, tablets and e-readers in bed before falling asleep can negatively affect quality of rest, suggests a small study published in Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Researchers monitored a dozen people who stayed at a sleep lab at Boston’s Brigham and Women’s Hospital for two weeks, according to SFGate.com. Each participant spent five consecutive evenings reading a book for four hours under reflected light, and then spent five nights using an iPad for the same duration. All had mandatory bedtimes of 10 p.m. and had to wake up at 6 a.m.

The study subjects who used the e-readers had a significant shift in their melatonin levels in the evening, took 10 minutes longer to fall asleep, had nearly 12 minutes less rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and reported feeling more groggy the following morning.