Dubai Residents Sacrifice Sleep as Evening Screen Time Disrupts Rest Patterns

A 2025 University of Sharjah study tracked 420 adults across the UAE and found that those who used phones or tablets within one hour of bedtime lost an average of 47 minutes of total sleep time per night.

The finding lands as Dubai pushes its annual Dubai Fitness Challenge 30x30, which runs through the end of the month and encourages residents to log at least 30 minutes of daily movement. Many participants finish evening runs or gym sessions then scroll through work messages or social feeds while winding down, a pattern that undercuts the very recovery the challenge aims to support.

Local routines under the lights

Along Marina Walk running track, fitness trackers show peak activity between 7 pm and 9 pm, after which many runners head straight to nearby cafes and continue checking screens. At JBR beach, the open-air workout zones stay busy until 10 pm on weekdays, with participants often using fitness apps to log sessions before checking emails on the same devices. Both spots sit within walking distance of high-rise apartments where residents report keeping phones on nightstands as alarms.

The Sharjah research team measured melatonin levels in saliva samples taken at 10 pm and found a 23 percent drop among participants who spent more than 90 minutes on backlit screens after sunset. The drop correlated with later sleep onset and more fragmented rest, measured by wrist actigraphy over two weeks.

Practical steps that fit Dubai schedules

Residents can set device night modes to activate at 9 pm and move chargers outside bedrooms, a change several JBR building managers have promoted through resident newsletters this year. Those finishing late runs at Marina Walk can switch to paper logs for the final 30x30 entries instead of phone apps. Consulting a local physician remains the first step for anyone experiencing ongoing sleep trouble, especially given the high number of shift workers in Dubai’s hospitality and logistics sectors.