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Sleep gadgets promise better night’s rest

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By Anne D’Innocenzio
Posted on September 12, 2017

Pillows that track your snoozing patterns? A bed that adjusts based on how much you twist and turn? Companies are adding more technology into their products, hoping to lure customers craving a better night’s sleep. 

Some specialized businesses are making gadgets that promise to measure and improve the quality of slumber, while mass-market retailers like Best Buy are offering simpler ideas — like the effect different lighting can have on falling sleep. But with ever-growing options, people may find items are getting more sophisticated, but may not yet be proven.

The interest in sleep has intensified. The number of sleep centers accredited by the American Academy of Sleep Medicine nearly tripled from 2000 to 2015, the group said.

People are more likely to brag about how much they spent for a mattress than on their clothes, according to Marian Salzman, CEO of Havas PR North America. “Sleep is the new status symbol,’’ she said.

Smart beds and pillows

It’s a big business. One of the more expensive products is Sleep Number’s 360 Smart Bed, which runs from $3,449 to $4,999. It makes adjustments based on how restless people are while they’re sleeping.

The Zeeq pillow, which sells for $299 and is from bedding brand REM-Fit, monitors snoring, and can gently vibrate to nudge someone into a different sleep position.

The scientists assess how well the devices match the center’s own overnight sleep studies, which use measures such as heart rate and brain wave activity to determine the length and the stages of sleep. Kushida’s conclusion? “Consumer wearable devices are not there in accurately detecting the stages of sleep,’’ he said.

The problem: They focus on motion, which can be deceptive, since a person could be lying in bed awake.

In fact, San Francisco-based startup Hello, the maker of a product aimed at tracking sleep via a clip attached to a person’s bedsheet, recently announced it was shutting down amid reports the device didn’t correctly track sleep patterns.

Still, Kushida believes that consumer products are getting better and will be able to accurately monitor and solve sleep issues in the next five to 10 years.

Sensory sleep products

Separate from gadgets, some stores are highlighting sounds and smells they say can help people sleep better. Longtime insomniac favorite HSN Inc. offers a $299 Nightingale Sleep System that masks indoor and outdoor noises.

Best Buy has a Philips Lighting’s system that works with devices like Nest and Amazon Alexa to let people choose the colors and brightness of lights, and program them to turn off at certain times or respond to the sun.

And a company called Sensorwake is launching a product in the U.S. that releases smells like fresh linen that it says can help you sleep better.

If nothing worked and you’ve had a fitful night, you can at least be woken up more gently. The same company makes a $99 olfactory alarm clock, with scent options that include a strong espresso. But if you let it go for three minutes without shutting it off or hitting snooze, it’ll start making noise — good if you have a stuffy nose.

— AP

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