Your Late Night Photo Editing Sessions Might Be Ruining Your Sleep
The blue light special isn't so good for your brain
When I have a lot of photos to edit (which is quite often), I have a routine I like to follow. I wait until everyone goes to sleep, get a big container of water to drink, put on re-runs of The Office on Netflix, and edit photos until my eyeballs scream at me to go to sleep. I’m always tired at the end, but it’s not always easy to fall asleep right away, and it turns out that might not be a coincidence. A recent study out of the UK says that using a light-emitting device before bed can mess with melatonin production, which is necessary for a good night of sleep.
It’s specifically the blue light that’s doing the damage, so several companies have tried to figure out how to combat the effect. A company called F.Lux makes an app that very gradually changes the color temperature of your screen to make it less blue. That way, you’re not seeing as much of the blue light that your body may be mistaking for sunlight. And while that may work for people who are just answering emails or even watching movies, it’s completely out of the question for trying to edit photos.
Some researchers have suggested that spending an hour without looking at a screen before bed is the best way to combat the potential problems, but I don’t know if I have that kind of willpower.
Have you noticed your late night photo editing sessions messing with your ability to sleep?
When I have a lot of photos to edit (which is quite often), I have a routine I like to follow. I wait until everyone goes to sleep, get a big container of water to drink, put on re-runs of The Office on Netflix, and edit photos until my eyeballs scream at me to go to sleep. I’m always tired at the end, but it’s not always easy to fall asleep right away, and it turns out that might not be a coincidence. A recent study out of the UK says that using a light-emitting device before bed can mess with melatonin production, which is necessary for a good night of sleep.
It’s specifically the blue light that’s doing the damage, so several companies have tried to figure out how to combat the effect. A company called F.Lux makes an app that very gradually changes the color temperature of your screen to make it less blue. That way, you’re not seeing as much of the blue light that your body may be mistaking for sunlight. And while that may work for people who are just answering emails or even watching movies, it’s completely out of the question for trying to edit photos.
Some researchers have suggested that spending an hour without looking at a screen before bed is the best way to combat the potential problems, but I don’t know if I have that kind of willpower.
Have you noticed your late night photo editing sessions messing with your ability to sleep?
From: Gizmodo
