Sleep with your phone under your pillow? Maybe you should reconsider…

Most of us have our phones on us at all times. Texts and emails are constantly coming through, you use saved credit cards to pay with ease, and you never know when you might need to call someone. It’s even understandable that people want to look at their phones as soon as they wake up to handle all the notifications that arrived while sleeping.

But should your phone be on or near you while you’re sleeping? Probably not, and here’s why.

1. It puts our health at risk due to emitted radiation

Generally, mobile phones emit radiation due to transmission signals around 900MHz. Owing to this, keeping cell phones close to the head for prolonged periods can lead to headaches, muscle pains, and other complicated health issues.

Although people tend to keep their phones close to them while they sleep for different reasons, it is, however, better to be safe than sorry.

2. It could prevent you from sleeping

LED screens, which include cell phones, tablets, TVs, and other gadgets, give off blue light; a type that studies have suggested to impede the production of the sleep-inducing hormone melatonin and disrupt our circadian rhythms.

Although the reason for this is yet unknown, it may be because blue light emits wavelengths similar to daylight, which can deceive our bodies to think that it’s daytime, at any time.

3. It could set your pillow on fire

A good number of cell phone users are so attached to their phones that they sleep with them even under their pillow. The result of this habit has led to recorded incidences of pillows being set ablaze.

The most popular of this incidence is the July 2014 teen from Texas who woke up to a burning smell. Her sheet and mattress have been scorched by her Samsung Galaxy S4, which was under her pillow.

It is, therefore, advisable to shut down the transceiver of your cell phone by keeping it on “airplane mode” while you sleep. Or better still; turn it off because cell phones pump out electromagnetic radiation whenever they’re on.