The dream, a new lode for technology companies
Headphones that detect snoring, sleep monitors, nasal masks, among others, are some of the devices with which big brands of technology want to conquer those who have trouble falling asleep
The obsession of a perfect and restful dream has become a dream market for the technological companies dedicated to "sleep tech", which at the IFA 2018 in Berlin present from anti-snoring devices to measurement applications.
Some of the devices give advice. For those who do not have health problems, but are curious and want to know the quality of their sleep, are the "wearables", a connected devices that are used as an activity watch or bracelet to which a function was integrated to measure their cycles and wake up at the moment when the algorithm estimates it optimal.
Another novelty of the IFA are anti-snoring devices. The company QuietOn, of two ex-members of Nokia, present some small headphones that detect the snoring of the environment and diffuse in their place noises that reassure. This also works for street noises.
To create good conditions at the time of awakening, some builders venture into luminotherapy, usually integrated into a morning awakening, which diffuses a white light and repositions sleep cycles to those of the sun.
- 'Orthosomnia', an obsession -
A bit futuristic, Philips is about to commercialize the SmartSleep, a tape that surrounds the skull and copper the ears, on which it emits a sound similar to the static that is heard on a television when there is no signal, which is supposed to make the dream deeper.
There are captors in the front. An application that controls the device collects the data of the sleeper and gives advice to improve their sleep cycles.
The Dutch firm also exhibited the DreamWear, a nasal mask that allows oxygen to be sent to people suffering from sleep apnea.
But as these technologies are democratized and medical offices are filled with patients who talk about these devices, professionals are skeptical.
"Those who are not satisfied with their sleep, who have disorders or suffer from fatigue or drowsiness should discuss these issues with a professional, regardless of what their connected devices say," Ilene Rosen, president of the American Medical Association, warned in May. of the dream (AASM).
This obsession with a perfect dream now has a name: "orthosomnia," a tracing of orthorexia, the sickly obsession with eating healthy food, which is not yet classified as a medical disorder.
