Sleep Monitoring - Enhancing Sleep Quality Through Data Analysis

The process of tracking and analyzing sleep patterns to improve sleep quality and overall health.

Sleep Monitoring FAQ

What is a sleep tracker?

A sleep tracker is a device that monitors one or more aspects that reflect your sleep patterns, habits, stages, quality, and/or duration. This measurement is indirect, relying on more easily detectable physical signals of sleep, rather than basing it on brain activity and eye movement as they do in some formal medical tests.

What is the best sleep tracker?

Sleep trackers can provide some insight and maybe even help you develop better sleep habits. There is no such thing as the best sleep tracker, because everyone is different, but we have tested a ton of wearables, from rings and smartwatches to headbands, bedside devices, and even a mat designed to go under your mattress.

Are commercial sleep trackers a medical device?

Commercial sleep trackers aren’t medical devices, but a good sleep tracker should be able to accurately capture and assess how your heart rate, energy output, blood-oxygen level, body temperature, and other metrics affect—and dictate—the quality of your sleep.

How do you use a sleep tracker?

Wear your sleep tracker on your non-dominant hand. Studies have shown if you wear it on the dominant hand, this tends to overestimate results. Remember to keep your tracker charged. Make sure your tracker is firmly attached to your wrist, so there is adequate skin contact for the sensor.

How do sleep trackers work?

Wearable devices remain on the sleeper throughout the night to measure data. Other trackers may rest on the mattress, under the mattress, or next to the bed to collect information unobtrusively. Virtually all sleep trackers upload this data to a device that runs it through an algorithm to analyze and display the results.

What is a sleep tracker app?

Sleep tracker apps can be downloaded on to your phone. They offer a reading of sleep quality measures, including your phases of sleep - light sleep, deep sleep, and REM sleep - and estimate your total sleep score. A couple of examples of sleep tracking apps are Sleepscore and Sleep Cycle.