Sleep-tracking apps may contribute to insomnia

Some people might think that tracking their sleep will give insight into their sleep quality, but some case studies from a team in Chicago and sleep experts found obsessing over the results on the monitor can backfire and cause insomnia. Most of these apps have not been clinically validated and track only movement during sleep.

Dr. Vishesh Kapur, co-director of the UW Medicine Sleep Center, says the best way to tell if you’ve had a good night’s rest is to trust how you feel.

“Folks who get good sleep and allow enough time for sleep and do that on a regular basis should wake up feeling rested and being able to get up out of bed and get going for the day and feel fairly alert throughout the day,” Dr. Kapur says.

Downloadable video soundbites with Dr. Kapur are available for news outlets:

• Broadcast-ready soundbites (2:28)
• YouTube version (2:28)
• Soundbite log

 

scraped from https://www.newswise.com/articles/sleep-tracking-apps-may-contribute-to-insomnia