A simple path to healthy sleep habits

CEBU, Philippines - Sleep plays a critical role in health and wellbeing, from protecting against cardiovascular disease, diabetes and obesity, to boosting neurocognitive functions, mental health and longevity. With this in mind, a simple yet powerful set of sleep tools has been released recently by health-and-fitness brand Fitbit, to help millions of Fitbit users around the world improve their sleep consistency and overall health.

Now available on the free Fitbit® app and compatible with all Fitbit devices that track sleep, Fitbit’s new Sleep Schedule feature helps guide users to get a more consistent sleep pattern with:  personalized sleep goals based on one’s sleep data to achieve optimal amount of sleep each night, customized bedtime and wakeup targets to establish sleep consistency, and reminders to stay on schedule, and a sleep schedule history to chart one’s progress.

These tools are the first in a series of new sleep features being developed in collaboration with Fitbit’s new panel of leading sleep experts that includes Drs. Michael Grandner at the University of Arizona, Allison Siebern at Stanford University, and Michael Smith at Johns Hopkins University.

The Fitbit app is a vital part of the Fitbit platform – consisting of devices, apps, social and motivational features, advice and personalized coaching – which is continually getting smarter and easier to use with features like automatic sleep tracking and exercise recognition to make tracking one’s health and fitness effortless. Working in harmony, the Fitbit platform helps people make behavioral changes to be more active, exercise more, eat smarter, track their sleep and manage their weight. While many people understand the benefits and importance of a good night’s sleep for their health, getting enough sleep (7 to 9 hours) and regularly going to bed around the same time each night can be a challenge.

According to Fitbit’s sleep experts, adhering to a consistent sleep routine is one of the most important things people can do to improve their sleep: “If you’re constantly changing your sleep routine, it can have the same effect as giving yourself jetlag because you are continually changing your circadian rhythm, also known as your internal clock, which can negatively impact your health and wellness,” said Michael Grandner, PhD, MTR, CBSM. “To improve your physical performance, mental health and cognitive functions, you should aim to get a sufficient amount of sleep each night and be consistent with the times you go to sleep and wake up each day. Fitbit’s new Sleep Schedule tool makes it easier for people to see how much sleep they’re actually getting in order to establish a healthy routine – this has the potential to help millions of people around the world improve their sleep and overall wellbeing, which is really exciting,” Grandner added.

Research has shown that getting enough sleep can also positively impact how much one exercises the next day and is vital to post-training recovery, playing an integral role in the body’s ability to repair itself. Additionally, Fitbit data also shows a correlation between consistent bedtimes and daily active minutes, especially for users who go to bed early each night. Users who sleep an average of 7 to 9 hours nightly also have a lower body mass index (BMI) than those who sleep only 3 to 4 hours per night, while those who are overweight or obese (BMI over 25) on average sleep over an hour (70 minutes) less per week than those with a normal BMI (BMI 18.5-25).

“What’s great about the new Fitbit Sleep Schedule feature is that it looks at your sleep data from the Fitbit device you’re wearing day and night, analyzes it for patterns and creates a personalized schedule just for you,” said Tim Roberts, Executive Vice President, Interactive at Fitbit. “This is a great example of how we’re providing guidance using Fitbit data to help millions of people develop healthier habits and routines, and it’s just the first in a series of new sleep features that we’re working on to help our users improve their health through data and coaching.” 

The new Sleep Schedule features on the Fitbit app will help one meet his or her sleep goals and maintain a more consistent pattern of sleep through the following tools:

Sleep Goal. Based on a person’s sleep data from his Fitbit tracker, he can follow the app’s personalized recommendations or set his target number of hours to make sure he’s getting enough sleep each night.

Bedtime and WakeUp Targets. Based on one’s sleep goal and past sleep behavior from her Fitbit tracker, the app will recommend target bedtime and wakeup times. She can customize these based on her personal preferences and schedule.

Bedtime and Wakeup Reminders. To help one reach his sleep goal and regularly go to bed and wake up more consistently, he can receive push notification reminders on his smartphone. He can also set a silent wake alarm on his Fitbit tracker based on his wakeup target.

Sleep Schedule History Chart. One can track her sleep consistency over time to determine if she’s meeting her goals or if she needs to adjust her sleep schedule. (FREEMAN)