Many Baker students use their phones as alarms and place their phone near their head while they sleep. But is it a good idea to sleep with your phone?

Blue lights emitted from smart phones and electronic devices can disturb quality of sleep. According to the Pew Research Center, 44 percent of cell phone users keep their cell phones within arm’s reach while they sleep.

Students may want to think twice about sleeping with a cell phone at their side.

“Typically you go through a sleep pattern during the night where you go through different stages of sleep and the blue light impairs the quality of you going through those different stages, so you don’t get as good of sleep at night,” Associate Professor of Psychology Sara Crump said.

Using your phone before bed, either to text or to get on social media, could potentially be bringing stress with you to bed.

“I sleep with my phone, and I use it as my alarm clock,” Junior Ryenn Johns said. “I don’t usually use my phone before I go to bed, but when I do, I find it harder to fall asleep.”

The bright light that comes from phones could interfere with your brain. When you try to go to sleep your body’s internal clock is regulated by a hormone called melatonin, which is sensitive to blue light exposure, especially the blue light coming out of smart phones, and other electronic devices.

“I use my phone for about 30 minutes before I go to sleep, and the brightness of the screen seems to wake my brain up a little bit and it makes it hard for me to sleep afterward,” junior Luke Miltz said.

If you want to increase your chances for a good night’s sleep, before you go to bed, make sure your phone is at least 6 feet from the bed, and keep the screen of the phone placed down.