March 15, 2024

Read our new edition of the Garmin Health Research Glimpse, a journey into the realm of health and clinical research, focusing on the essential yet often overlooked aspect of human well-being — sleep. As we delve into the significance of sleep research, we’ll explore how Garmin is at the forefront, contributing invaluable insights to various studies that aim to unlock the mysteries of sleep and its impact on our health. We’ll explore the impacts of social media detox on sleep in teenagers, a comprehensive investigation into university students’ sleep behavior across the semester using Garmin smartwatches, the detrimental influence of esports on sleep duration and stress levels, and the ability of consumer-grade devices such as the Garmin vívosmart^® series to replicate medical device sleep-actigraphy (analyzing sleep movement via wearables to get objective data about sleep patterns) results.

Why Sleep Matters:

Sleep, a fundamental pillar of health, plays a crucial role in physical, mental and emotional well-being. Research has shown that adequate, quality sleep is linked to improved cognitive function, emotional resilience and overall better health outcomes. As we navigate through the intricate landscape of sleep studies, it becomes evident that understanding sleep patterns is not only key to enhancing daily performance but also holds the potential to unveil solutions for myriad health challenges.

How Garmin Factors in:

Garmin maintains a strong dedication to health research, with the Garmin Health Connected Ecosystem serving as an important asset for advancing scientific exploration. The data collected through Garmin smartwatches and fitness trackers, coupled with the powerful Garmin Health SDKs and the Garmin Connect^™ Developer Program, facilitates comprehensive monitoring of various health metrics. From tracking sleep patterns to assessing stress levels and heart rate¹, Garmin devices provide researchers with a wealth of information, contributing to a deeper understanding of the intricate interplay between sleep and overall well-being.

Impact of Social Media Detox on Sleep in Teenagers

The Study:

This teen-focused intervention study was conducted with a national cohort of teen girls to explore the impacts of social media detoxes. During a 12-day period, comprising 4 days of pre-intervention, 4 days of intervention (detox) and 4 days of post-intervention, the teenage girls completed either a full or partial 4-day detox of all social media platforms. Over this period, the teenage girls wore Garmin fitness trackers and provided self-reported measures to comprehensively grasp their experiences with the social media detox.

How Garmin Factors in:

Participants wore the Garmin vívosmart^® 4 fitness tracker for 12 days in order to collect the following: (1) stress, (2) sleep quality and quantity, and (3) heart rate variability. The data from the Garmin fitness tracker was used to analyze averages and changes across participants’ experiences on the detox, specifically comparing their heart rate/stress/sleep on the detox to the pre- and post-intervention periods.

The Result:

The study reveals a complex relationship between reduced social media usage and its effects on individuals, with both quantitative and qualitative data uncovering diverse impacts across participants. Notably, participants exhibited diverse changes in heart rate, sleep patterns and stress levels following the intervention, with variations observed in both the magnitude and direction of these impacts. While the majority experienced extended sleep durations during the detox period, a significant subgroup displayed decreased sleep, suggesting a nuanced interplay between social media engagement and adolescents’ well-being. These findings underscore the need for personalized approaches in understanding the diverse experiences of individuals when it comes to managing social media use for improved well-being.

Additional resources:
Connected Learning Alliance Blog
PhysioQ Article
Spectrum News
The Doctors Segment
The Social Media Well-Being Experiment – Labfront

Garmin Fitness Tracker Allows for Lower-cost Alternatives for Sleep Tracking Studies

The Study:

This study assessed whether an affordable consumer fitness tracker, Garmin vívosmart 4, could replicate sleep-actigraphy results traditionally obtained from medical devices such as Actiwatch 2 and Motionlogger. Sleep actigraphy is the use of wearable devices to conduct objective assessments of sleep patterns by monitoring movements during both sleep and wakefulness, facilitating research into sleep behaviors and dynamics.

How Garmin Factors in:

The Companion SDK enabled the research team to extract raw accelerometer data from vívosmart fitness tracker, which in turn allowed the team to analyze this data with two different methods for sleep patterns. This analysis was then used and compared to results from medical devices to see how accurate…