Slow wave sleep also reduces cortisol (aka the stress hormone) and releases hormones like prolactin and growth hormone that together support the adaptive immune system.

It strengthens memory and helps with memory consolidation - when the brain turns short-term memories into long-term ones. Studies show that slow wave sleep helps the brain recover from all it learned during the day. RELATED: Want Improved Focus and Better Sleep? Try Binaural Beats (Playlist Inside) To put that into context, gamma, the fastest brain waves, have an average frequency of 40 hertz. These slow waves are known as delta waves, and your brain produces them at a frequency of one to four hertz. It’s when your breathing and heart rate drop to their lowest levels and your brain waves slow down and get wider (as measured by a test called an electroencephalogram, or EEG). Deep, or slow wave sleep, is the most restorative stage of non-REM sleep. To understand what slow brain waves mean, here’s a quick primer on the different sleep stages: When you’re sleeping, you cycle through two types of sleep each night - rapid eye movement (REM) sleep and non-REM (NREM) sleep. Your brain produces brain waves at different frequencies, depending on where you are in your sleep cycle. Brain waves are simply the electrical signals your brain cells send to communicate with each other. How? By playing sounds to increase the amplitude and number of your slow brain waves. How does a sleep headband work?Ī sleep headband is designed to make your deepest stage of sleep even deeper. I now have Dreem - it definitely works and you get great data. An earlier incarnation of sleep headbands is the now defunct Zeo - a wearable headband that monitored your sleep, and sent you morning reports via a phone app telling you what was affecting your sleep and how you could improve it. Philips’ SmartSleep, Dreem, and Sleep Shepherd are leading the pack. There aren’t many on the market just yet. More slow waves equals deeper sleep (more on that below). When the sensors detect your deepest stage of sleep - known as slow wave - the headband plays soft audio tones to increase your brain’s production of slow brain waves. It has built-in sensors that track and react to your sleep patterns. What is a sleep headband?Ī sleep headband is a wearable device that looks a bit like a helmet, but in soft fabric. So should you wear one? Here’s what you need to know. I tried one of the earlier sleep headbands and it changed my life. You spend the same amount of time asleep, but those hours are going to count for a lot more. The gold standard are sleep headbands, and they’re gaining steam for their ability to improve sleep and help you wake up feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day. Then, if you want to experiment further, you can try the high-tech wearable sleep devices on the market. So how do you deepen the rest that you’re already getting? The first step - try sleep hacks like blackout blinds and lowering the temperature in the room (learn more here about all the ways to hack your sleep). It’s the quality of your sleep that counts ( science backs up this claim). I’ve been saying for years that it’s not about the number of hours you clock in your bed each night - the standard 8-hour recommendation is a myth. You probably know the feeling - you manage to sleep 7 or 8 hours a night, yet you still wake up groggy and cranky. Audio tones increase the amplitude and number of slow waves more than other techniques.Since slow waves are so good for the brain, scientists have experimented with ways to create more of them during sleep.Slow wave sleep helps your brain recover, improves memory, and boosts the immune system.Deep, or slow wave sleep, is the most restorative stage of non-REM sleep.It has built-in sensors that track and react to your sleep patterns.To deepen the rest that you’re already getting, you can try a sleep headband, a relatively new wearable device that deepens the sleep you’re already getting.

It’s not about the number of hours you clock in your bed each night - it’s the quality of your sleep that counts.

Upgrading your sleep remains one of the most powerful ways to transform your life.

Philips smartsleep headband