#156 - Everything You Need to Know about Tech and Sleep - Part 1
In August 2024 - our new revised theoretical model explaining how evening technology use and sleep are linked - will be published in full. But you can read the full version online here.
Some of you will read the full paper - some of you will want the highlights.
For those of you who will read the full paper, you’re going to get both …
The Summary
Before I dot point the highlights, it’s important to provide you with more than a decade’s worth of research into a single picture.
For reference, I’m going to show you our original theoretical model we proposed in 2010, so you can see how braindead recommendations like “no technology in the hour before bed” are.
The key message here should be - it’s not a one size fits all.
And because our original model became so widespread, we need the new model to overtake. So we’re providing the new model for you to download - to use in your teaching, seminars, webinars, workshops - you name it - to show you’re up to speed with the latest research:
from: Cain & Gradisar (2010). Sleep Medicine
The New Model
Highlight 1 - Blue Screen Light
“A perplexing observation is the consistency of the small extensions on sleep latency resulting from bright screen use.”
We have been championing the data found in several studies over the years that show ‘bright’ screenlight - in particular the blue light from screens - isn’t to blame. We’ve even gone so far as calling this the Number 1 Sleep Myth of Our Time.
To make it easier for people to see for themselves, we’ve collated all the studies that have tested the effect of blue screenlight - and you can download this table for yourself to use for your own presentations (it’s one of those slides that people will likely take a photo of) …
HIGHLIGHT 2 - It’s not what’s on your screen
“Using technology before bed may increase pre-sleep cognitive or physiological arousal, but the consequent alerting impact on sleep is likely to be less than originally assumed. Effects on sleep duration and sleep latency seem less than 10 min - if at all.”
In recent years, I’ve had the same experience over and over again.
You show people the evidence - the data above - for blue screenlight.
Their response?
“Well, it must be what’s on your screen.”
There’s an assumption that the content on the screen makes you feel alert, and thus it takes you longer to fall asleep.
From our experience, it helps to show them something that’s hard to out-argue.
Data …
from: Bauducco et al. (2024). Sleep Medicine Reviews.
Again, feel free to download and use the photographic Table above in your presentation.
After all, this Table paints 30,000 words …
HIGHLIGHT 3 - NIGHTTIME SLEEP DISRUPTION
“The night-time disruption hypothesis appears a promising lead as a mechanism with a potentially large influence on sleep. Yet, the sleep science field’s downfall is that night-time disruptions from technology is a niche and understudied area.”
This quote says it all.
Whilst influencers and copycat social media posts bitch and moan about blue light from screens - as well as doctor so-and-so who is quadrupled boarded in sleep medicine and who is a associate academic from some university in America (but has never published a study examining technology use and sleep!) - the world seems to be missing a key insight.
Instead of telling everyone to stop using their phone in the hour before bed - just ask them to turn airplane mode on when they attempt sleep.
Why is it that everyone thinks they’re a ‘sleep expert’?
HIGHLIGHT 4 - SLEEP DISPLACEMENT
“Unlike the tests of the bright light and arousal hypotheses that show a delay of sleep onset of, at best, 9.9 and 8.5 min, respectively, it is clear that a delaying of more than 1 h of ‘shut-eye time’ (and hence sleep onset) is more profound when examining the sleep displacement mechanism.”
Nuff said?
p.s. a big THANK YOU to the work of Jan van den Bulck and his crew - especially Liese Exelmans.
Both doctors.
Both with letters after their names.
Both intelligent.
Both creative.
Both humble.
Both, my friends.
Both whom, created this …
HIGHLIGHT 5 - Sleep Leads to Tech Use
“sleep disturbances may be a precursor to the use of technology at bedtime, either as a way to fill the void while waiting to fall asleep, or as a regulatory strategy to deal with unwanted thoughts and emotions”
It’s one thing to be a sleep researcher testing these ideas.
It’s another thing to be a sleep therapist, hearing story after story that pre-sleep tech use is helpful.
This is what we heard so many times from teenagers over the years.
We ended up testing it, and sure enough, technology use can be a safety net for a lot of people.
2 out of every 3 people to be specific.
Which is why we should be shaking our head when we think that credible organisations (like the following) recommend many people remove their safety net …
HIGHLIGHT 6 - Individual Vulnerabilities
“Some individuals may be more vulnerable than others to the negative effects of technology on sleep and intervention efforts should focus on such characteristics and subgroups”
Remember - one size does not fit all.
Sure, in our clinical work, we’ve seen young people who game all night, sleep all day, and don’t go to school.
These cases are rare.
Not like medium-rare. More like bloody.
When you step out of the clinic and look at society as a whole, the vast majority can use technology without it affecting their sleep.
But what is the most fascinating and ripe sub-topic of this research area, is identifying particular vulnerabilities people have when it comes to tech and sleep.
In some ways, it’s almost like mapping the human genome.
There are so many personality characteristics. And people lie on a continuum on these - somewhere between perfect vulnerability to perfect resilience.
Researchers need to identify these traits before tech companies do.
Yet, if you do get around to reading our new paper, you’ll find that the tech companies already have a head start …
HIGHLIGHT 7 - PUBLIC HEALTH MESSAGING
“(Dr Matthew) Walker has demonstrated to us that it is possible for scientists to be the direct translator of science to the public ... if the message from a powerful messenger is changed, can it change the beliefs of a population?”
A long time ago, in a galaxy that existed before COVID-19, a wise woman once told me that people prefer video and audio to reading lengthy articles.
If you’re one of those people … I guess you didn’t get this far down this blog to see that you can access this podcast between Matt Walker and me regarding screens and sleep.
For everyone else, you can go behind the scenes and hear me explain these highlights in non-scientific jargon …
CONCLUSIONS?
I’d like to thank the gang of stellar gals who came together, and embarked on a shit tonne of work that resulted in this new paper - Sezza (Serena), Megster (Meg), KB (Kate), Chels (Chelsea), and Meeks (Michal).
Let me stress a point that I’ve been stressing for the past 12 months …
Read broadly. And read deeply.
However, this time - we’ve done all the broad and deep work - so you can have one single paper to use to educate yourself - for FREE
And for the observant ones, yes, this is Part 1. There is a sequel coming …
Prof MG