Without getting too technical, all light (and colour) is made up of wavelengths and of those wavelengths, Violet and Blue are the shortest. Due to being the shortest, they interact with our Circadian Rhythm, which is our body’s internal clock and one of the largest factors that can influence restorative sleep or cause disruption for baby to sleep well.
The reason it causes this effect is that Blue Light suppresses the production of Melatonin (sleepy hormone) . That’s not to say that all exposure to Blue Light is bad, we require this exposure during the day to keep our bodies awake and working correctly! However, with babies and young children who require naps, it’s a fine balance.
Blue light can be found in the sunshine (along with Vitamin D, which helps to promote sleep quality if exposed at the right time of the day. However, we can also get an artificial blue light on our devices with screens and even from some LED light bulbs. Some items such as night lights and the popular gro clock produce blue light!
I recommend parents always check for whether an item uses blue light when buying baby accessories for the nursery or anywhere baby sleeps!
It’s no secret that experts advise screen-time be limited for children, whilst this is something we all strive for in our daily lives it can easily be disrupted. Sometimes, despite our best efforts, we just need the kids to be distracted whilst we get something done! And I'd be the first to put my hand up for this..... It’s tempting to use this screen time in the evening as we get tired and have more to do, but trying to keep the little ones away from screens for 2 hours before bed is the ideal practise so as not to mess with the Melatonin production and help with better sleep.
For further advice contact me via whatsApp on 0490 022 371 or babysleepfairy@gmail.com
Comments