The colour and brightness of bedroom lighting can affect sleep.
In this blog, Dr Lindsay Browning explores the affects of light on your bedroom environment and how different light can help or hinder sleep.
How light affects sleep
Our circadian rhythm is our body’s ability to know what time it is without looking at a clock, and it helps us to produce melatonin (our sleep hormone) at the right time to help promote sleep at night.
Bright light exposure makes our brains think that it is still daytime, and as a consequence bright light exposure at night suppresses melatonin production, making falling asleep harder.
Light in the blue spectrum
Some research suggests that our eyes are particularly sensitive to light in the blue spectrum for affecting our circadian rhythm. Light in the blue light frequency is found in broad spectrum light (such as daylight) and also from LED lights, LED devices and screens, such as laptops and phones.
Some studies have found that blue-light blocking glasses (or amber glasses) can help to reduce blue frequency light exposure, and improve sleep.
If you want to use electronic light emitting devices in the evening and in bed, such as a tablet or phone, you could consider enabling “night mode” on your devices. This will both reduce the intensity of the light and reduce the blue-spectrum light range, minimising the negative effect on your sleep.
Light in the red or amber spectrum
Warm lighting that is in the red or amber spectrum would be preferable to cool white lighting in a bedroom, especially for bedside lamps.
Candles produce a warm, dim lighting, which are especially beneficial in the evening. Although, of course, do be aware of the fire risks.
Since bedroom lighting should be dimmer than daytime lighting, using a dimmer switch in the bedroom is also good way to reduce the light intensity.
You can turn down the brightness of the light as soon as you start your bedtime routine.
Alternatively, having the light brighter on a dark morning can also help you to feel more awake.
Daylight
In the summer, natural daylight can also wake you before you need to, or before you have got your recommended 7-9 hours.
If this is the case, then consider getting thicker and darker curtains or a black out blind.
You can also wear an eye mask. It is helpful to have one of these if you share a bedroom with a partner who needs a light on when you wish to sleep.
A good bedroom environment for sleep
Light is just one of many factors that may affect the quality of your sleep and how quickly you fall asleep. Your bedroom environment is important – including temperature, noise and comfort of your bed and bedding.
If all of these elements are right, then you can also evaluate your bedtime routine. Take a look at this post which offers 7 tips for a good bedtime routine: