What if wearable devices could detect changes in a person’s stress levels while they sleep? A recent study conducted by researchers at the University of Vermont, published in PLOS Digital Health, has found that changes in perceived stress levels can be seen in sleep data. This discovery is a significant advancement in the effort to identify biomarkers that can help identify individuals who may need support.
There are signals in sleep data that could potentially identify people who need support, according to Laura Bloomfield, who is a research assistant professor of mathematics and statistics and the lead author of the study. She stated that changes in stress levels can be observed in sleep data, given the importance of sleep for both physical and mental health.
After analyzing the baseline sleep data, the researchers discovered consistent connections between individuals’ perceived stress scores and various factors such as total sleep time, resting heart rate, heart rate variability, and respiratory rate. It’s not surprising that most participants got less than the recommended amount of sleep.
In the recommended 8 to 10 hours of sleep for young adults, the minutes do matter. Each extra hour of sleep reduces the likelihood of reporting moderate-to-high stress by about 38 percent. Monitoring nightly resting heart rates can also provide insight, as each additional beat per minute increases the odds of experiencing stress by 3.6 percent.
Bloomfield leads the Lived Experience Measured Using Rings Study (LEMURS) at UVM, which began in 2022 and follows hundreds of first- and second-year college students using a wearable Oura ring biosensor 24 hours a day, as well as through surveys about their experience.LEMURS’s first peer-reviewed paper demonstrates that wearable data can indicate changes in mental health. The study found that sleep measures from the Oura ring were able to predict participants’ stress levels. This insight could potentially lead to timely interventions for those experiencing increased stress. Understanding the relationship between sleep measures and mental health measures is crucial for implementing effective interventions. LEMURS is dedicated to exploring the connection between wearables and mental well-being.
The LEMURS project, led by Chris Danforth, a professor of applied mathematics at UVM’s Vermont Complex Systems Center and a fellow of the Gund Institute for Environment and Bloomfield, MD/Ph.D., aims to explore how wearable technologies can be utilized to enhance the health and well-being of young people by providing personalized health feedback. The project is funded by a grant from MassMutual.
It is a well-known fact that college students often suffer from inadequate sleep, high levels of stress, and are more susceptible to mental health challenges. The study aims to examine the effectiveness of various interventions such as exercise, nature excursions, and group therapy in improving health and wellbeing. The goal is to determine which interventions work best and how they can be scaled up for large populations. This process involves identifying biometric data that provide clear signals for addressing changes in physical and mental health, which requires gathering and analyzing millions of hours of data each year.
Participants in the LEMURS study wear Oura rings, which passively collect measurements including temperature, heart rate, breathing rate, and nightly sleep duration, as well as establish routines.The researchers use e-surveys to gather more subjective responses regarding potential stressors and emotions. Location data is also utilized to determine the participants’ exposure to nature. Once collected, the data is analyzed by LEMURS researchers like Mikaela Fudolig, who is a research assistant professor of mathematics and statistics. They examine specific connections that could be utilized for developing health interventions. Fudolig co-authored the PLOS Digital Health paper and emphasizes the significance of the study’s data. Initially, 600 first-year students aged 18 to 20 were part of the LEMURS study.
Tracking these individuals through college and beyond has been a goal for the researchers. Co-author Fudolig, a research assistant professor of mathematics and statistics, highlights the significance of the study’s longevity, stating, “We have been tracking the same students for almost two years now, and there are very few studies that do that.” The study gathers data from various sources including ring data, survey data, nature-dose data, and blood work. Fudolig emphasizes the excitement of combining these different dimensions to gain a comprehensive understanding of the participants. The power of the study lies in the multitude of data sources and the potential insights that can be gleaned from them.of sadness or hopelessness had increased from 26.1% to 36.7%. This alarming trend has only been exacerbated by the pandemic. According to a recent sleep analysis of LEMURS participants by Fudolig, certain factors such as anxiety and depression have been identified as potential predictors of stress. The analysis revealed that women, in particular, exhibited two distinct heart rate curves. Specifically, those who reported experiencing impairment in their daily life due to anxiety or depression had heart rates that dropped later in the night. This suggests a high burden of stress among this demographic. The COVID-19 pandemic has further amplified mental health issues for a population that was already vulnerable. Prior to the pandemic, the Center for Disease Control and Prevention observed a significant increase in the percentage of high school students nationwide experiencing persistent feelings of sadness or hopelessness. This trend has only been compounded by the impact of COVID-19.The percentage of young adults experiencing feelings of sadness or hopelessness increased from 26.1 percent to 36.7 percent. The 2021 Youth Risk Behavior Survey conducted by the CDC also revealed that 42 percent of students reported feeling persistently sad.
This is one of the reasons why Danforth and Bloomfield initiated LEMURS in the first place.
“There is a significant amount of stress in this demographic,” Bloomfield explains. “College is often viewed as a carefree period of self-discovery, but it also comes with a lot of changes and additional stressors. There is a need for better, more accessible support systems for young adults during this phase of their lives.”She wasn’t shocked to find out that the LEMURS participants had high perceived stress scores, with 64% of responses being classified as moderate to highly stressed. These scores are based on personal evaluations of how individuals perceive the problems they face and their ability to handle them, and can vary depending on their life experiences, personality, support system, and coping skills. Bloomfield points out that interpreting stress signals using biometric data is challenging because it’s important to determine when deviations from a person’s baseline are problematic and worrisome. “This population is resilient, as they are young and healthy,” she adds.I believe this research is shedding light on important issues that affect this group. Our ultimate goal with this study is to provide support for individuals during times of declining mental or physical health status.”
Other UVM researchers involved in this project are Julia Kim, Jordan Llorin, Juniper Lovato, Matt Price, Taylor H. Ricketts, Peter Sheridan Dodds, Kathryn Stanton, and Christopher M. Danforth, collaborating with Ellen McGinnis and Ryan McGinnis (Wake Forest University). This marks the first peer-reviewed paper from UVM’s Lived Experience Measured Using Rings Study, a longitudinal investigation using wearable technology.The study aims to identify and encourage positive improvements in physical and mental health. MassMutual provides funding for this research. Â
