Is dark mode in apps good for our health and saves battery?

Last week, the messaging app Whatsapp released the resource “dark mode” for your users. Available to android and iPhonesthe mechanism allows changing the application interface, which was, until then, white and blue, to a dark gray color, a trend in the global application market – twitter🇧🇷 Instagram and Messenger already have this trick.

In a press release, WhatsApp states that the dark mode was created to offer greater visual comfort to the application’s users, through a dark gray interface with whitish details, to improve readability.

But does dark mode actually bring benefits to our vision? According to Lisia Aoki, an ophthalmologist at Hospital das Clínicas, in São Paulo, there is no research to prove this. “What exists are user surveys showing a preference for gray over black. Less intense contrast and a darker screen can be more comfortable for eyesight,” she explains.

Aoki still reiterates that what brings risks to the health of the eyes is, in fact, the prolonged use of cell phones and electronic devices. “Exposure to light from these devices, especially the frequency of blue light, may be associated with some eye diseases, such as macular degeneration”, says ophthalmo.

In addition, the doctor explains that spending a lot of time using cell phones and computers can cause eye strain, headache and dry eye sensation. The recommended thing is to take breaks every 20 minutes and, during those intervals, look at an object 20 feet away (around 6 meters) for 20 seconds. It is also extremely important to have an up-to-date ophthalmological examination, reviewed annually, to correct possible problems and verify the need for glasses.

Does dark mode interfere with sleep?

Another necessary care is to avoid using the devices at night, as it can interfere with the production of sleep hormones, such as melatonin🇧🇷 “The brightness of the screens interferes directly through the retina, inhibiting and delaying the production of melatonin”, he explains. Andrea Bacelara neurologist specializing in sleep medicine.

Then, Will putting my cell phone in dark mode reduce the damage to my sleep? In theory, yes, since the luminosity index will be lower and, consequently, the inhibition of sleep hormone production will also be lower.

However, in practice, this is not quite what happens. Bacelar explains that, being an electronic device, the stimulus it takes to the brain is not just light. There is also interaction. When we use our cell phones, we read some news that interests us, we see a video or someone talking about a subject we like and our tendency is to reproduce and respond. “There are stimuli that will act on different areas of the brain, emotion, interest, reward. And this can increase the level of alertness during sleep”, explains the neurologist.

So you need to avoid using your cell phone before bed. Among Bacelar’s recommendations for the last hours of our day, electronics are not on the list. What’s more, they shouldn’t even be inside the room. “If I’m awake, I know I have that machine over there that communicates with the world and I can’t sleep, I’ll access the electronic equipment again”, he reiterates.

If you can’t sleep, choose to read a book or watch a monotonous program to activate your sleep – after all, if you put on that favorite series, your attention span will increase, won’t it? In addition, it is recommended that you go to bed fed, always at the same time, as well as get up daily at the same time.

Dark mode and battery saver

On the other hand, dark mode brings practical advantages, such as battery saving🇧🇷 In fact, using the feature makes the cell phone’s energy last longer. “The biggest consumer of cell phone battery is the screen. When we use a dark color, we can reduce the brightness of the screen, without compromising the quality of what we are seeing and this results in energy savings”, he explains. Gustavo FernandezCEO at WA Project, cOnsultorship specializing in software and application development.

According to Fernandez, when carrying out tests on the same device and in the same applications in light and dark colors, battery savings were up to 30% using the second option. “The economy varies a lot from device to device, but it exists”, he says.

and why this happens? The company’s president explains that the cell phone screen is made up of mini light bulbs and, every time an image needs to be displayed, each one lights up with a certain color.

In newer devices, when a lamp needs to display the color black, it receives the order to stay off, thus giving the feeling of displaying the color black. Therefore, using dark mode consumes less energy than decreasing the screen brightness, for example. “Without a doubt, an off lamp consumes less energy than an on, even if it is not very bright”, he says.

How to Enable Dark Mode on WhatsApp

Did you like the news? If you have an Android phone, to get dark mode, just open the application’s settings menu. Then go to the “Conversations” option and then “Theme”. Finally, select “Dark”.

Those who have an iPhone, with the iOS 13 operating system, should go to the “Settings” option; then “Screen and Brightness”; then go to “Appearance” and finally “Dark”. Once this is done, when you open the WhatsApp app, the interface will already be darkened.

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