Forget relaxing lullabies – now you can sing yourself to sleep.
A gadget has been invented to turn users’ own brainwaves into a symphony.
When played back before bed, it is claimed to vastly improve the quality of sleep.
The MyWaves device was invented by leading neuroscientist Dr Alain Destexhe after he discovered the strange phenomenon by accident.
Studies now suggest hearing the sound of your own brain activity – which is unique like a fingerprint – can improve the time spent in REM.
A gadget has been invented to turn users’ own brainwaves into a symphony. When played back before bed, it is claimed to vastly improve the quality of sleep
This is an important part of the sleep cycle as it is when we process memories, develop our brains, and dream.
To work, users first need to spend one night with the MyWaves Pebble device attached to their forehead.
This then records the brain when in the deepest sleep and, in turn, is converted into three music tracks that mimic the waves.
Dr Destexhe said the mind was like an ‘orchestra playing a thousand instruments’ and the song created often became warm Blade Runner style symphonies.
For best results, the company recommends users listen to the music created by the device for at least 30 minutes every night before bed.
Unveiling the tech at this year’s Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas, MyWaves are set to launch properly next month and will charge around £400 for the product.
To work, users first need to spend one night with the MyWaves Pebble device attached to their forehead
The device records the brain when in the deepest sleep and, in turn, is converted into three music tracks that mimic the waves
Dr Destexhe, an internationally renowned neuroscientist who has studied sleep for 30 years at the prestigious Université Paris-Saclay, said: ‘We have a science-backed technology that basically uses your delta waves, which are linked in your brain to sleep, to tell you all the activities of your sleep, from deep sleep to rapid eye movement (REM).
‘By selecting a very specific part of your [delta waves while you] sleep and turning it into music, we can produce music that triggers your brain to fall asleep quicker, longer and better.’
Dr Destexhe made the discovery by accident while on a flight listening to recordings of his own brainwaves for a research project.
Though usually unable to sleep on the plane, he fell asleep – and the same happened on the way back when he repeated the process.
On his return, he set up several trials to see it had a similar effect on other people.
The first was a blind test with his students, where he gave them six recordings – three of them from their brain and three from other people’s.
He said: ‘We asked them to try and to tell to tell them which ones they were finding more efficient in getting them to sleep and they clearly pointed to their own, even though they didn’t know whose it was. I thought “wow!”‘.
Several said they felt they were dreaming more, which Dr Destexhe said was a good thing because ‘it indicates the sleep quality in general is better’.
This post first appeared on Dailymail.co.uk
