Analysis of over 4 billion nights of Fitbit sleep data supports scientific theories that
sleeping 7+ hours can positively affect sleep quality
Fitbit, the leader in connected health and fitness wearables, has
validated the ability of wrist-worn trackers that incorporate movement
and cardiac sensors, like Fitbit Alta HR™, Fitbit Blaze™ and Fitbit
Charge 2™, to accurately determine light, deep and REM sleep stages. The
results of Fitbit’s study, which were scored independently by
polysomnography technicians, demonstrate that these devices can be used
to track sleep stages with a reasonable degree of accuracy in normal
adult sleepers, avoiding the cost and artificial sleep environment of a
sleep laboratory. Having the ability to gather reliable sleep stage data
on wrist-worn devices can help simplify sleep research and increase
public knowledge about sleep.
Dr. Conor Heneghan, lead sleep research scientist
at Fitbit, will present the findings of the study, “Estimation of Sleep
Stages Using Cardiac and Accelerometer Data from a Wrist-Worn Device,”
at SLEEP 2017, the joint conference of the American Academy of Sleep Medicine and the Sleep Research Society, in Boston from June 3-6.[i]
“With our sleep tracking tools, Fitbit has
transformed what people can learn about their sleep habits by taking the
ability to track sleep stages out of a lab and putting it on the
wrist,” said Dr. Heneghan. “The ability to easily track your sleep not
only helps individuals better understand their own sleep, it also
unlocks significant potential for us to better understand population
health and gain new insights into the mysteries of sleep and its
connection to a variety of health conditions.”
In April 2017, Fitbit introduced new sleep features
to provide people with a greater understanding of their sleep habits.
Sleep Stages, now available with Alta HR, Blaze and Charge 2, uses heart
rate variability to estimate the amount of time spent in light, deep
and REM sleep, as well as time awake each night to help better recognize
sleep quality.
With more than four billion nights of sleep
tracked since 2010, Fitbit has the most extensive, longitudinal database
on sleep in the world. This database uniquely positions Fitbit to
identify macro sleep trends across millions of people around the globe.
Fitbit recently conducted an analysis of millions
of nights of anonymized and aggregated Fitbit sleep stages data that
supports long-standing sleep scientists’ theories that sleeping more
than seven hours a night is best for your health.[ii]
Leading sleep researchers have linked getting less than seven hours of
sleep to a reduction in REM sleep, which could impact short-term memory,
cell regeneration and mood regulation.[iii]
Fitbit analysis uncovered these unique correlations and observations:
· While
sleeping longer will lead to getting more deep and REM sleep, sleeping
7-8 hours gives you the highest combined percentage of time in these
stages. Sleeping less than 7 hours will lead to deep and REM stages
being a smaller proportion of your overall sleep.
· Waking up earlier than usual can impact the percentage of REM sleep you get, which occurs more at the end of the night.[iv]
· When
getting five hours or less of sleep a night, users get a smaller
percentage of deep sleep, which occurs near the beginning of the night.
Deep sleep is important for many physical processes such as cell
regeneration, human growth hormone secretion and feeling refreshed in
the morning.[v]
· People
are unconsciously awake at night; the average awake time adds up to 55
minutes, or 10-15% of the night. Short periods of awake time are a
normal component of a healthy sleep cycle.
Fitbit also evaluated sleep patterns by gender and generation. Key findings include:
· Gen
Z (age 13-22) sleeps the most, averaging 6 hours and 57 minutes of
sleep a night with 17% of the time in deep sleep, while Baby Boomers
(age 52-71) sleep the least at 6 hours and 33 minutes per night with 13%
of the time in deep sleep.[vi]
· People get less deep sleep as they age, decreasing from an average of 17% at age 20 to 12% at age 70.
· Women
sleep an average of 25 more minutes a night than men and have a higher
percentage of REM sleep, a difference which increases even further
around age 50.
“These findings further support the general
recommendation that most adults need to consistently sleep 7-9 hours per
night, and illustrate why a good night’s rest is so important for your
overall wellbeing,” said Dr. Michael T. Smith, Jr., professor of
Psychiatry, Neurology and Nursing at Johns Hopkins University School of
Medicine and Fitbit Advisory Panel Sleep Expert. “When sleeping less
than seven hours, your body may not be getting enough of both deep and
REM sleep, the two sleep stages that are very important to many aspects
of maintaining your overall health.”
Previous sleep research has shown that most
people spend 50-60% of their night in light sleep, 10-15% in deep sleep,
and 20-25% in REM sleep. Fitbit analysis shows that age and gender
impact your sleep cycle, and confirm that most people typically lie
within these ranges on average over 30 days. Night-to-night sleep cycles
may vary widely.
Light Sleep
|
Deep Sleep
|
REM Sleep
|
Total Duration
|
|
Female Baby Boomers (Age 52-71)
|
53.5%
|
13.0%
|
21.3%
|
6 hrs 42 mins
|
Female Gen X (Age 41-51)
|
52.2%
|
14.4%
|
21.7%
|
6 hrs 46 mins
|
Female Millennial (Age 23-40)
|
51.0%
|
15.5%
|
21.7%
|
6 hrs 53 mins
|
Female Gen Z (Age 13-22)
|
49.9%
|
16.8%
|
21.4%
|
7 hrs 6 mins
|
Male Baby Boomers (Age 52-71)
|
54.8%
|
12.8%
|
19.9%
|
6 hrs 23 mins
|
Male Gen X (Age 41-51)
|
52.3%
|
14.6%
|
21.0%
|
6 hrs 22 mins
|
Male Millennial (Age 23-40)
|
50.8%
|
16.0%
|
21.1%
|
6 hrs 28 mins
|
Male Gen Z (Age 13-22)
|
49.8%
|
17.3%
|
20.6%
|
6 hrs 47 mins
|
About Fitbit, Inc. (NYSE: FIT)
Fitbit helps people lead healthier, more active
lives by empowering them with data, inspiration and guidance to reach
their goals. As the leader in the connected health and fitness
category, Fitbit designs products and experiences that track everyday
health and fitness. Fitbit’s diverse line of award-winning products
includes Fitbit Surge®, Fitbit Blaze™, Fitbit Charge 2™, Fitbit Charge HR™, Alta HR™, Alta™, Fitbit Charge™, Fitbit Flex 2™, Fitbit Flex®, Fitbit One® and Fitbit Zip® activity trackers, as well as the Aria® Wi-Fi
Smart Scale. Fitbit products are carried in 54,000 retail stores and in
65 countries around the globe. Fitbit Group Health uses the power of
the Fitbit activity trackers, software and services to deliver
innovative solutions for corporate wellness, weight management,
insurance and clinical research. Fitstar by Fitbit offers a digital
health and fitness platform that helps and inspires users to get fit
anytime, anywhere, and has a footprint of over 9 million downloads
across the Fitstar Personal Trainer and Fitstar Yoga apps, with
availability in 155 countries.
Fitbit and the Fitbit logo are trademarks or
registered trademarks of Fitbit, Inc. in the U.S. and other countries.
Additional Fitbit trademarks can be found at www.fitbit.com/legal/trademark-list. Third-party trademarks are the property of their respective owners.
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