Recognition of the importance of sleep for overall health and wellbeing is on the rise. Nonetheless, it’s estimated that more than 83 million Americans struggle with chronic sleep deprivation.
Regardless of the cause, consistently not getting enough sleep can lead to numerous problems such as obesity, lowered immunity, chronic pain, cognitive impairment, and even Alzheimer’s disease.
People are increasingly turning to sleep trackers to help them pinpoint specific issues with the quality of their sleep. Below are some brief reviews of a few of today’s most popular sleep trackers.
Jawbone UP3
The Jawbone UP3 is a wearable device that fits like a watch. It can separate the hours that a person sleeps into light, deep, and REM stages. Other features of this sleep tracking device include:
- Measures heart rate, body temperature, breathing rate, body composition vs. electric current flow, and sweat that occurs due to sleep-induced stress.
- It is priced lower than many of its competitors.
- It is equipped with a smart alarm that wakes the person wearing it according to the optimal time in his or her sleep cycle.
- You can choose between vibrational and silent alarms.
- Syncs wirelessly with Android and iPhone devices.
- 7-day battery life.
Since the Jawbone UP3 doesn’t set sleep tracking automatically, users will need to set it when they go to bed each night and again if they get up during the night to use the bathroom.
Xiaomi Mi Band 4
This wearable device analyzes all sleep factors to provide users with a daily sleep score. Once it has enough unique data from the user, the Xiaomi Mi Band 4 makes personalized recommendations. The data comes across clearly on the app that comes with the device to help users gain the most benefit from it.
With 20-day battery life and a low price tag, people are noticing this new player in the sleep tracking industry. Its large and colorful screen has been a hit with people who have used it so far. However, its newness can also be a drawback since it doesn’t yet have many user reviews.
Beddr Sleep Tuner
Recently released by the Beddr Company, the Beddr Sleep Tuner comes with a rich array of features not found in other devices. For example, it’s the only sleep tracker currently on the market that has registered with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
It’s a wearable sensor that people place on their forehead before going to sleep each night. The Beddr Sleep Tuner also comes with an iOS app so users can see their sleep data on a larger screen. This device measures several markers that indicate whether sleep is of good or poor quality. These include heart rate, oxygen level, sleep duration, sleep position, and stopped breathing events. The latter can be especially valuable for people dealing with sleep apnea.
While most sleep trackers double as activity trackers, Beddr created a device that focuses 100 percent of sleep statistics. For a relatively small investment, people struggling with chronic sleep deprivation can gain exceptional insight into their sleep patterns.
Regardless of the data provided by a sleep tracker, no one should self-diagnose a sleep disorder. However, bringing the information to a doctor for review can help get a more timely and accurate diagnosis.
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