After diets and exercises to get better sleep at night comes a special headband that cools the brain, thus leading to a much better rest for people suffering from insomnia.
Designed to be worn at night, the device works in a rather quirky way. It pumps a liquid coolant around the front of the scalp and the forehead, helping chill the frontal cortex — the part of the brain that supposedly plays a role in deep sleep.
Also read: Just one sleepless night can be harmful
As per research, this exact area is more active in insomniacs. Thus, theoretically, cooling it might cause a reduction in brain overactivity, helping patients sleep better.
This new device, known as Ebb, includes a soft fabric headband through which the most important element – the cooling fluid — is circulated. Connected to a bedside temperature controller, it cools and pumps fluid to the headband which is worn at night after going to bed.
An early research conducted by the developers of the new headband at the University of Pittsburgh in the US also revealed that the cooling effect upon the brain's frontal cortex also helped insomniacs sleep just as well as people not suffering from insomnia. And this is mostly because of the cooling effect – cerebral hypothermia's ability to reduce activity.
In a recent study, 106 patients showed signs that it was safe and effective when it came to treating insomnia. Also, the device has been recently approved for use by the US medicines regulator, the Food and Drug Administration.
Insomnia — the difficulty in sleeping or staying asleep long enough to feel refreshed in the morning — is known to affect one in three people. While in most cases stress and anxiety are its leading causes, it can also result due to existing illnesses or as a side-effect of some medicine.
Also read: Sex the new cure to better sleep?
As suggested in a study presented at the Academy of Sleep Medicine's annual conference, insomniacs slept 89 percent of the time they were in bed when they were using this cooling headband, and also nodded off three minutes earlier than those who had no trouble sleeping.
While this definitely comes as a revolution in treating the condition, certain lifestyle changes like dieting, exercise and adopting a healthy sleep schedule can also combat the intensity of insomnia.
