A recent MacWorld Magazine article guided readers on how to choose the right application for white noise to help them get to sleep.

Unfortunately the editors completely ignore the fact that your smartphone (whether Android or Apple) should not even be in the bedroom, much less sitting on your night stand. Unfortunately smartphones might let you download an application to help you sleep, but the device itself broadcasts EMF radiation, which does exactly the opposite.

EMF’s destroy the melatonin that helps get you to sleep. The dangers of EMF are well documented, and while some localities have tried to get manufacturers to put warning labels on phones, the industry has fought back and will not even tolerate labels which list radiation levels.

This means that even everyday use of cellphones can be dangerous, but that’s a subject for a future post. My point here is to warn you away from keeping your cellphone anywhere near your bedroom. This means that you should not use it as an alarm clock or to help you get to sleep.

Certainly allowing youngsters to keep their phones by their bed, for late night texting or web browsing, should be strictly prohibited. It won’t be a poplar decision, but the damage to young brains can be even more harmful.

It’s tempting to put your phone on ‘airplane mode’ so no signal is sent, but that won’t negate the impact of the electronics in the phone. The best option is to turn it off completely and leave the phone in another part of the house.