Can I Measure Real REM Sleep at Home?
REM or Rapid Eye Movement is the phase of sleep where you dream most vividly. It is still unclear why dreaming is so important to the brain, but doctors agree REM is vital to good health. An adequate amount of REM sleep has been shown to strengthen memory as well as stimulate the regions of the brain associated with learning.
The only way to see how much REM sleep you’re getting is to measure your brainwaves. An electroencephalogram (or EEG for short) does just that. A head band is placed on your forehead to pick up the signals being sent throughout your brain - this is the home sleep EEG version, real easy to use. Wearing an EEG headband while you sleep can show what stage of sleep you are in and for how long - that's called sleep architecture.
If you are curious, new home EEG testing is currently available at BlueSleep, it's called the sleep Profiler. We are leading the way for using home EEGs to see if you are getting the right amount of REM sleep.