Now your Apple Watch can stop nightmares by waking wearers who are tossing and turning, makers say 

Apple watches can stop you having nightmares, the company claimed yesterday.

Sensors that monitor heart rate and movement can detect when users are having a bad dream. 

The watch then ‘gently’ vibrates to shake the wearer out of it, but tries not to wake them up.

Speaking at the Web Summit in Lisbon, Apple’s Dr Sumbul Desai said: ‘We are incredibly excited about how people are using our platform to develop powerful apps and improve lives.

‘For example, people with PTSD often suffer from enormous emotional pain, which is only compounded by nightmares that make it almost impossible to get enough sleep.

‘That’s where an app like Nightware can do some good and change lives for the better.

‘It uses the heart rate sensor, accelerometer and gyroscope on Apple Watch to detect a nightmare and disrupt it with just a gentle vibration.

‘For people living with PTSD, this has been truly life changing. Together, what we’re building is a holistic, health ecosystem – one that provides constant monitoring and deeper insights, and with them, peace of mind.’

Dr Desai said the development had been ‘incredibly useful’ for people suffering post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), who are susceptible to night terrors.

Sumbul Desai, Apple’s Vice President of Health, speaks on centre stage of the Web Summit – Europe’s largest technology conference

Apple watches can stop you having nightmares, the company claimed yesterday

The feature is the brainchild of a company called Nightware and is available through an app of the same name. 

Trials have shown it can improve a user’s sleep within two weeks, says Nightware.

The feature is the brainchild of a company called Nightware

The latest iteration of the Apple Watch, series 8, has several new health functions including telling female users the best time to conceive.

The £419 device has sensors embedded to measure temperature, heart rate, and movement using an accelerometer and gyroscope.

Research has found anywhere between 50 to 85 per cent of adults report having the occasional nightmare. 

An estimated two to eight per cent of people say their nightmares cause sleep problems.

Women tend to report experiencing them more often than men, but they tend to become less frequent and intense both sexes as they age.

Most nightmares occur during REM during the last stage of the sleep cycle, most often in the final third of the night.

Stress, anxiety, and an irregular sleep routine can all cause them, while trauma can also be a key reason, particularly those suffering from PTSD.

HAVE APPLE WATCHES EVER ACTUALLY SAVED LIVES?

In 2018, a Michigan woman saved her drowning husband’s life by calling 911 on her Apple Watch. But that’s not the first time the wearable has helped owners in dire circumstances.

In April 2017, Casey Bennett of Laytonsville, Maryland, was driving home from school when he was struck by another vehicle, sending him and his Jeep Patriot flying through the air.

A 28-year-old was able to get lifesaving treatment for a pulmonary embolism because his Apple Watch detected a sudden rise in his heart rate 

Bennett, 22, found himself hanging from the driver’s seat by just his seat belt, with his iPhone too far out of reach to call for help.

However, he remembered his Apple Watch included an SOS Emergency feature and held the side button down to contacted emergency rescuer worker, who were on the scene in six minutes. 

Many wearers use the Apple Watch’s heart-monitoring capabilities to catch cardiac issues early. 

James Green, 32, said in 2017 his timepiece notified him of a sudden rise in his heart rate, a sign of a possible pulmonary embolism.

Green had already suffered a life-threatening clot before and raced to the hospital, where doctors found a new clot on his lungs, which could have killed him in minutes if left untreated. 

He says the only reason he is only alive is because of that notification.  

‘Never thought a stupid lil [sic] wrist computer I bought two years ago would save my life,’ Green tweeted. ‘Saw my heart rate go up, ended up being a pulmonary embolism.’