Sleep Cycle App Claims it Can Detect Sleep Patterns
By: Christian Henson
Updated: March 5, 2013
Stage 1
sleep is the state of sleep closest to consciousness and usually follows the
REM Cycle. The Sleep Cycle App said it can tell if you are entering Stage 1
sleep by your movements and wake you up within a 10, 20, or 30 minute time
frame you assign.
Dr. Christopher Rose is Board Certified in Sleep Medicine and said the Sleep Cycle App can't tell what stage of sleep a person is in because there can be movement during all stages.
"Even in their deepest stages of sleep, it's a condition called Paroxysmal Leg Movements of Sleep and they kick their legs pretty much all night long even into REM sleep and slow wave sleep, stage 3 sleeps, the deeper sleeps."
Even if the Sleep Cycle App could tell if someone was leaving REM sleep Dr. Rose said waking up at that time doesn't necessarily mean you will feel more rested.
"We have more REM sleep towards the end of the night and sometimes people will come into wakefulness from REM sleep but there are no studies that show that that's beneficial for us."
Dr. Rose suggested changing your daily routine to not drinking caffeine or alcohol after noon, getting daily exercise but not close to bed time, and making your bed a sleeping space only, reading or watching TV in a different room.
If you still feel tired in the morning or are having sleep problems Dr. Rose suggests seeing your physician.
