Best Color Light for Sleep: Warm Light Makes for the Coolest Night Lights
Mar 30, 2021
Best Color Light for Sleep: Warm Light Makes for the Coolest Night Lights
A good night’s sleep is absolutely crucial to maintain good overall health. Adults between the ages of 18 and 64 should be getting 7–9 hours of sleep each night, according to the National Sleep Foundation. However, that’s often not the reality—the CDC reports that 35.2% of adults in the U.S are sleeping for fewer than 7 hours a night.
So why aren’t Americans getting enough sleep? Some suffer from sleep apnea or anxiety-induced insomnia, while others cram too much into a 24-hour day, such as longer hours at work or more time at the gym. Still, what about everybody else? The answer may have less to do with our schedules and more to do with the color of light we’re exposed to at bedtime.
A Tale of Two Lights: How Different Colors of Light Affect Your Sleep
White light—the light naturally emitted by the sun—is essential to our overall health and happiness. When the days start getting longer in the spring, many suffering from seasonal affective disorder notice their symptoms begin to abate. Exposure to white light during the day can improve your mood, energy, and alertness—one of the many reasons people seem happier in the summer. However, white light also has a dark side.
White light contains blue light—the light produced by phones, TVs, and tablets. Blue light has the strongest impact on your circadian rhythm, or the natural process regulating your sleep/wake cycle. Exposure to blue light—especially before and during bedtime—can suppress melatonin and make it harder to fall and stay asleep. And with Americans getting more screen time than ever, it’s important to filter blue light from phone screens and other devices.
The soft glow of a yellow tinted night light is just the right color for most people.
What is the Best Color Light for Sleep?
Not all light is bad for sleep … far from it. Red light is shown to have no effect on the circadian rhythm, so if you do like some light when you sleep, a dim red light may be the way to go.
Additionally, yellow and orange light have minimal effects on the circadian rhythm and many people find them particularly soothing while drifting off to dreamland. A warm, dim, yellow or orange light would be another great choice for a night light.
Now the Good News: Sticking to Gentle Hues and Warm Light for Sleep is the Best Solution
Bedtime routines vary greatly person-by-person. Some like to read in bed, while others need white noise in order to fall asleep. Some can only sleep when the room is pitch black, while others prefer at least some light.
If you fall into the last category, how do you shed light on your sleep routine? Do you turn on the TV before going to bed and turn it off in the morning? Or maybe you leave a light on in the hall and open your bedroom door ever so slightly? Plenty of people—regardless of age—aren’t particularly fond of the dark. And if you’re one of those, you may want to get a dim, warm, yellow or orange night light..
Can’t see yourself investing in “just” a night light? Then don’t—the BodyGuardz Portable 5-in-1 Emergency Hub is an all-purpose emergency preparedness essential that includes a night light. Loaded with state-of-the-art features like customizable civil and weather alerts, an ever-ready, device-charging power bank, a one-touch emergency alert, and more—the 5-in-1 Hub has a soothing, warm yellow night light built right into the device. And at only 3 lumens, the night light is soft enough to leave on in or just outside your bedroom, but bright enough to instantly find if you’re ever in an unexpected emergency situation.
Don’t Sleep on the Benefits of Slumber
The importance of a good night’s sleep cannot be overstated. Getting 7–9 hours every night can help you think clearly, relieve stress, improve your mood—and even boost your immune system, strengthen your heart, maintain a healthy weight, and more. Plus, with the Emergency Hub standing by, protecting you and your family all night long (while emitting a soothing, warm yellow light), you may just sleep sounder than you ever dreamed possible.