Forget late-night snacking, now researchers are saying that our tech devices could be causing us to gain weight.

According to new research, the short-wave blue light emitted from many of our devices is disturbing our sleep patterns and, as a result, is disrupting our bodies from burning foods efficiently.

The research report states that, in order for our bodies to release the correct levels of melatonin – responsible for converting food and drink into energy – we need pitch-black darkness; this means that the glow of our charging tech devices in the bedroom may be serving up problems for our metabolism.

The research findings have proven particularly interesting for Dr Simon Kyle, a sleep researcher at Manchester University, who has spoken of the link between alteration in sleeping patterns and the onset of obesity and diseases such as diabetes.

“There is a lot of research showing we are meant to be asleep at night when darkness falls and melatonin rises, and when the sun rises the melatonin is blocked by the sun,” he said, adding, “So if you start sleeping shorter, or receive light at the wrong time late into the night, it disrupts melatonin secretion and that could contribute to alterations in metabolism.”

Maybe it’s time to ease off all of those battery-draining Candy Crush Saga marathons, then?