Would you like to sleep better by staying away from this product?

Let's do a serious survey: Do you play with your phone before going to bed? "Who wouldn't?" Perhaps this is the most common answer.

Some people put down their phones at the last moment before they close their eyes before going to bed, while others use their phones to kill time an hour before going to bed. Whether it is sending messages, reading news, listening to music, watching videos or playing games, there is no doubt that smartphones have long become an extension of our bodies. Even when people are about to fall asleep, they continue to suck the "spiritual food" behind their phones and are reluctant to put it down for a long time. Data shows that modern people generally go to bed late, have difficulty falling asleep, and have poor sleep quality. These will affect work and life the next day.

This is partly due to the emotional impact of the content on the phone, but more importantly, it is the result of the blue light emitted by electronic products affecting the body's biological clock. The difficulty in falling asleep caused by using a phone at night is called "delayed sleep phase syndrome (DSPS)" caused by the blue light effect.

The World Health Organization report pointed out that the widespread use of electronic devices in modern life, especially at night, has led to an increase in the global insomnia rate. According to statistics from the China Sleep Research Society in 2024, more than half of Chinese people have insomnia problems. The nighttime sleep time of Chinese residents is generally short. In the evaluation of a full score of 100, the overall sleep quality score is only 75 points, and the overall sleep quality is poor.

What is quality sleep?

First, let's decode the definition of sleep. Simply put, sleep is a natural state of the brain and body, a process of rest and recovery. It is mainly divided into three stages, from light sleep to deep sleep to REM, which is the rapid eye movement sleep stage.

During this process, the brain is like a meticulous librarian, tidying up the bookshelf of memory. The body is like a diligent maintenance worker, repairing cell damage. Hormones and the immune system are also finely regulated and repaired at this time.

If you toss and turn in bed for more than 30 minutes and still have trouble falling asleep, or wake up more than twice at night, and your sleep quality is not as good as before, with a total sleep time of less than 6.5 hours at night, and you still feel as tired as if you have not slept during the day, there is no doubt that your sleep quality is not far from failing.

Continuous lack of sleep will bring us a series of uninvited health problems, including diabetes, cardiovascular disease, obesity, and colds.

At the same time, long-term lack of sleep can easily lead to neurasthenia. The organs in the body are over-consumed and their functions decline due to lack of adequate rest, and the skin and face show premature aging, such as dark circles and dull and rough skin.

Interestingly, the solutions to sleep disorders are sometimes surprisingly simple.

For example, avoid eating greasy or heavy-tasting food before going to bed, because greasy food is usually high in fat, and the digestive system needs more time and energy to work, which will increase the burden on the stomach, which can cause stomach discomfort, bloating, etc. and affect sleep.

Dinner should be mainly light, fiber-rich foods, such as vegetables, lean meat, fish, etc.

In addition, the sleeping environment is also important. Keep the bedroom dark and quiet, use blackout curtains or eye masks to reduce light interference. If external noise is difficult to avoid, use a white noise machine or earplugs to alleviate the noise.

At the same time, maintain the "sleep-only" function of the bedroom and try to separate the bedroom from the work area, so that the bed is only used for sleeping and relaxation, helping the brain to establish the association of "bed = sleep".

Maintaining about 30 minutes of moderate exercise every day, such as walking, yoga, or jogging, can help relax the body, regulate circadian rhythm, promote melatonin secretion, increase deep sleep, improve the depth and continuity of sleep, and make people more energetic when they wake up.

Stress and anxiety are one of the main causes of insomnia in modern people. Many people tend to think too much before going to bed. Meditation, deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation techniques before going to bed can help calm the brain and body.

Some people may say that in order to improve my sleep quality, I wear a smart watch to monitor and adjust it. Studies have shown that sometimes excessive attention to data and tracking results can lead to unnecessary anxiety, and excessive attention to sleep data can interfere with the natural sleep process. Experts suggest that similar technology products are an aid to data analysis and have limited impact on sleep. To truly improve our sleep, we must start with our daily living habits.

Good quality sleep is the foundation for us to cope with the challenges of modern life. Let's lie down and relax tonight and try to make some small changes. Let your mobile phone be out of sight for a longer time before falling asleep, let go of all psychological burdens, close your eyes, and embrace a beautiful dream!

This article is a work supported by the Science Popularization China Creation Cultivation Program

Author: Dongdongmiao Popular Science

Reviewer: Peng Zhiping, Director of the Information Science Department of the China Sleep Research Society

Produced by: China Association for Science and Technology Department of Science Popularization

Producer: China Science and Technology Press Co., Ltd., Beijing Zhongke Xinghe Culture Media Co., Ltd.