Do you want better sleep? Of course you do. You know how bad it is to miss out on sleep, so it can feel like insult added to injury to read yet another newfound, devastating consequence of insufficient sleep: heart disease, heart attack, high blood pressure, stroke, diabetes, mental impairment, etc. And the list is expanding almost daily as researchers learn more.
There are "easy" actions that may aid with sleep. Relaxation activities like meditation or chamomile tea are useful for some. Setting and sticking to a waking and sleeping schedule, creating a bedroom retreat, and making a list of worries before turning in can help too.
But we live in the personal computing age; what has technology done for you in the bedroom lately? (We're keeping it G-rated here, folks.)
Maybe not much good. Those darned researchers have been at it again, finding that the blue light emitted from screens has an effect on the brain that spurs wakefulness. Exposure to light at night can throw the body's biological clock off kilter. While any color of light can suppress melatonin production, blue light is most deleterious. Even more significantly, the content of those screens at bedtime: email, social media, calendars, Youtube cats, tweets from Kim, drafting your team, all get our brains humming at just the time they need to be slowing down.
Fear not! The heroes of modern culture, the geeks (thus labeled because I count myself in that number), have come to the rescue with a host of new sleep technologies intended to shield us from the host of physical and mental ailments associated with poor rest. There are two broad classifications of devices: (1) ones that track some metric about last night's sleep, and (2) ones that actively promote and usher tonight's sleep. The trackers have gained popularity in recent years, but many are left wondering what exactly they are to do with the data being tracked. Many wellness experts cite the main value of trackers is in making the wearers more aware of their sleep and their sleep hygiene, which will have the indirect consequence of leading to behaviors that make better sleep more likely. The more competitive among us, however, think the point is making competitive comparisons with others -- what's more fun than making losing at the sport of sleep the newest thing to lie in bed worrying about?
Devices that Track Metrics
This class of products measures something about a person's physical state during sleep, most prevalently movement of a wrist using built-in acceleration sensors -- a technique called actigraphy. It doesn't give an accurate picture of last night's stint in bed for those given to lying still, staring at the ceiling and contemplating the passing hours. Technically, the states of someone's sleep are defined by the rate of his or her brainwave activity: Frequent waves correspond to being awake and alert, slow waves to being in deep sleep. The popular trackers here do not measure brainwaves, and so infer a description of sleep from one or more indirect measurements. One of the first direct-to-consumer sleep trackers, which despite helping to create the market is no longer available, was a headband that recorded brainwave activity called Zeo. None of the following attach to the head; the first three are all wrist bands. The Apple Watch is not on the list, as it doesn't yet touch on sleep (although pundits are expecting it soon).
Fitbit Surge ($249.95)
The best selling Apple watch competitor employs actigraphy to estimate the time asleep and sleep stages from arm movements. It does not depend, as many other wrist bands (even other models in the Fitbit line) to press a button just before falling asleep -- if only falling asleep were as easy -- and again when waking.
JawBone Up 4 ($199.99)
The Up 4 is a wearable tracker with automatic sleep detection that uses bio-impedance to measure heart rate to augment actigraphy movement measurements. This data is compiled on a companion app that also provides sleep coaching tips.
Basis Peak ($199.99)
The Basis Peak offers automatic sleep duration and sleep stage estimates using an algorithm employing measures of actigraphy, heart rate, and skin temperature.
Sleep Rate ($99.99)
Sleep rate is a chest heart rate monitor with companion app that uses heart rate variability to infer the wearer's state of sleep over the course of a night sleep.
Beddit Sleep Monitor ($149.00)
Beddit slips under your top sheet and uses sensitive force sensors to measure heartbeat, respiration, and body movements. The information is sent to your phone through a Bluetooth connection.
Devices that Actively Promote Sleep
The most important metrics from last night's sleep are how refreshed I feel and how well I'm functioning today. Technological aids that actively contribute to those measures, while helping us avoid resorting to sleep drugs, are most advantageous. None are an irresistible effect that induces unconsciousness -- like Ambien or a date rape drug -- but rather they create a more optimal environment to maximize the potential of sleep.
Sleep Shepherd ($149)
The Sleep Shepherd is device I created out a sense of desperation to help my daughter overcome a debilitating sleep disorder -- a testament to necessity being the mother of invention. It is a reimagined nightcap made of breathable material that contains a brainwave sensor. Thin speakers emit hypnotic, binaural tones, that work with the brain's natural structures to literally lull the wearer to deeper sleep states. The tones play at a variable frequency determined by the current brainwave rate.
Is it possible to get a better night's sleep simply by putting on a hat? The answer with the Sleep Shepherd is a resounding "yes."
Sheex ($219)
These sheets replace traditional bedding to wick away heat better to better keep your body temperature in the target range to improve sleep quality.
Good Night LED ($70)
The Good Night LED is a light bulb that emits just half of the blue light than a typical bulb in hopes of reducing the blue-wave disruption to your circadian rhythms mentioned above.
BluBlocker ($33)
For those compelled to look at electronics screens at bedtime, these glasses are designed to filter out the blue wave light.
Withings Aura ($299.99)
Aura is a smart alarm, ambient light generator, and noise machine in one. The Aura also comes with optional sleep sensor accessory to track sleep.