As a restless sleeper you may have difficulty from waking up throughout the night, having disturbed sleep or waking up early and therefore often struggle feeling like you've had a good quality sleep. You may even find yourself relying on that morning coffee to help you feel more alert after a restless night. Our sleep plus pillow spray, a motion-activated sleep spray, is formulated to help improve your sleep quality.

Stay asleep faster - clinically proven
 
Specially formulated for those who wake often in the night, sleep plus pillow spray contains an encapsulated version of our Deep Sleep functional fragrance. It's proven through brain imaging to activate areas of the brain associated with emotion, pleasure and calmness with the potential to bring the mind into a pre-disposition towards sleep.1 
 
Sleep plus pillow spray has also been tested through independent user studies against a placebo to show that our innovative encapsulation delivery system helps to keep people asleep, specifically in REM sleep.
 
In our user studies we found that:
94% had a less disturbed sleep*
94% felt their sleep quality improved*
85% felt less anxious about trying to get to sleep*
91% felt less tired during the day*

 
*In a 7 day user study of 100 subjects (aged 18+) with self-diagnosed sleep issues compared to a placebo. 
 
 
What is encapsulation?
 
Encapsulation is a process by which very tiny droplets or particles of liquid or solid material are surrounded or coated within a continuous film of polymeric material.1 In this case, the Deep Sleep functional fragrance has been encapsulated. The natural, vegan microencapsulate breaks when the user tosses and turns and releases bursts of fragrance throughout the night to keep you asleep.         
 
Fragrance can perform an important role in memory consolidation whilst we sleep. Studies have suggested that odours smelt during the learning or encoding phase of memory processing, which are then presented during sleep can aid memory consolidation.2 Fragrance can thus be an interesting tool to optimise learning whilst we sleep.
 
 
[1]. Perinelli, D. R., Palmieri, G. F., Cespi, M., & Bonacucina, G. (2020). Encapsulation of Flavours and Fragrances into Polymeric Capsules and Cyclodextrins Inclusion Complexes: An Update. In Molecules (Vol. 25, Issue 24).
[2]. Neumann, F., Oberhauser, V. & Kornmeier, J. How odor cues help to optimize learning during sleep in a real life-setting. Sci Rep 10, 1227 (2020).
What is REM sleep?
 
Sleep comprises two different cyclic alternating states; a period of quiet sleep, with reduced brain activity, and where breathing is regular and slow, without movements (the non-REM sleep - NREMS). REM sleep, otherwise known as rapid eye movement sleep, is the stage of sleep that dreams occur. During REM stage of sleep brain activity is similar to that during wakefulness when our breathing becomes irregular.1,2

REM sleep has two distinct patterns, a tonic one - persistent throughout REMS, and a phasic one with briefs irregular muscle twitches and bursts of rapid eye movements; there is also a sudden increase of sympathetic nerve activity (your fight or flight response) with surges of blood pressure; breathing is irregular, heart rate is increased. REM sleep occurs in the last half of your 90-minute sleep cycle and also increases throughout the night, it accounts for 25% of your total sleep time.1,2
 
During REM sleep we process the day and consolidate, and create, new synaptic connections supporting memory. REM sleep is also associated with a decrease in activity in the area of the brain (the amygdala) that is linked to stress and fear. In addition REM sleep is also important for the functioning of an area of the brain, the prefrontal cortex, involved in many executive functions, and goal-directed activations (managing emotional reactions, impulse control, focusing attention, and anticipating events in the environment). Insufficient REM sleep can have an impact on cognitive functions such as decision-making processes and impulsiveness.3,4 Studies have shown that if REM sleep is disrupted it impedes emotional memory processing which can manifest in poor mental health.4,5      
 
REM sleep is particularly affected by artificial light during the evening and early night hours which can delay and disturb the circadian rhythms.
 
[1]. Blumberg, M. S., Lesku, J. A., Libourel, P. A., Schmidt, M. H., & Rattenborg, N. C. (2020). What Is REM Sleep? In Current Biology (Vol. 30, Issue 1).
[2]. Wassing, R., Lakbila-Kamal, O., Ramautar, J. R., Stoffers, D., Schalkwijk, F., & van Someren, E. J. W. (2019). Restless REM Sleep Impedes Overnight Amygdala Adaptation. Current Biology, 29(14), 2351-2358.e4.
[3]. Hutchison, I. C., & Rathore, S. (2015). The role of REM sleep theta activity in emotional memory. In Frontiers in Psychology (Vol. 6, Issue OCT).
[4]. Jakobson, A. J., Laird, A. R., Maller, J. J., Conduit, R. D., & Fitzgerald, P. B. (2012). Brain Activity in Sleep Compared to Wakefulness: A Meta-Analysis. Journal of Behavioral and Brain Science, 02(02).
[5]. Camarini, R., & Benedito, M. A. C. (1997). Rapid eye movement (REM) sleep deprivation reduces rat frontal cortex acetylcholinesterase (EC 3.1.1.7) activity. Brazilian Journal of Medical and Biological Research, 30(5).
 

 

Let there be light
 
Light is essential for humans; it adjusts the circadian rhythm and impact on many physiological and behavioural activities such as sleep, mood, neuro-endocrine function and cognition. Increased daytime light improves alertness, mood, performance and sleep and decreased light exposure in the evening and at night can promote sleep. It is essential to keep some regularity in the intensity, timing and length of light exposure in order to not alter the biological rhythms with negative impact on sleep, health, cognition and judgments.1,2 
 
It is thought to be important to ensure you are exposed to different wavelengths and intensities of light throughout the day to help maintain your circadian rhythm. One of the key moments is within the first 2 hours of waking, aim to get natural light into your eyes, without sunglasses, and don't look directly into the sun. The amount of time depends on cloud cover, it should be between 10-20 minutes. This triggers the timed release of a healthy level of cortisol into your system which acts as a signal to your body to wake-up boosting focus and alertness throughout the day. 3,4,5     
 
Modern humans are more often exposed to artificial light – resulting in less light during the day, while electric lightning during the night reduces or even removes darkness. The direction of light is also important as overhead lighting can activate receptor pigments (melanopsin etc.) located in the bottom of the eye de-synchronising the circadian rhythm. Late evening light exposure inhibits melatonin release, reduces sleepiness and delays the circadian clock. Even low levels of light in the sleeping environment have been associated to impaired sleep and metabolic dysfunctions. 3,4
 
Light is captured in the eye by photopigments. One of these pigments, melanopsin, is sensitive to a portion of the light spectrum, peaking in the blue colour. When melanopsin is activated it conveys information to the master biological clock in the brain (the suprachiasmatic nucleus), synchronizing circadian rhythms and regulating melatonin release. Melanopsin receptors have their own circadian rhythm they are particularly sensitive during evening and nighttime hours – explaining why exposure to even small amounts of blue light at night can have an important effect in destabilizing the circadian system. Increases in LED lightning in streets and buildings (sometimes more than 50% in some European cities) with increased blue light radiation increases suppression of melatonin regulating sleep.1,2,3,4,6 
 
Red light therapy is a term that uses both red light, with a wavelength of 600-700nm, and near infrared (NIR) that has a wavelength of 700 to 1,100nm. Both of these bands of wavelength are thought to act upon the mitochondria to stimulate ATP (the energy molecule) production. Although this would seem counter to sleep, red and NIR light has been shown to increase the production of melatonin outside of its traditional synthesis within the pineal gland. It is thought that this is related to melatonin's role in helping to protect the mitochondria from radical oxygen species.1,2
 
Red light has also been shown to help reset the circadian rhythm alongside its ability to increase melatonin synthesis and promote sleep.3,4
 
 
[1.] Yin, J., Julius, A. A., & Wen, J. T. (2021). Optimization of light exposure and sleep schedule for circadian rhythm entrainment. PLoS ONE, 16(6 June).
[2.] Böhmer, M. N., Hamers, P. C. M., Bindels, P. J. E., Oppewal, A., van Someren, E. J. W., & Festen, D. A. M. (2021). Are we still in the dark? A systematic review on personal daily light exposure, sleep-wake rhythm, and mood in healthy adults from the general population. In Sleep Health (Vol. 7, Issue 5).
[3.] Figueiro, M. G., Steverson, B., Heerwagen, J., Kampschroer, K., Hunter, C. M., Gonzales, K., Plitnick, B., & Rea, M. S. (2017). The impact of daytime light exposures on sleep and mood in office workers. Sleep Health, 3(3). 
[4.] Marqueze, E. C., Vasconcelos, S., Garefelt, J., Skene, D. J., Moreno, C. R., & Lowden, A. (2015). Natural light exposure, sleep and depression among day workers and shiftworkers at Arctic and Equatorial Latitudes. PLoS ONE, 10(4).
[5.] Mason, I. C., Grimaldi, D., Reid, K. J., Warlick, C. D., Malkani, R. G., Abbott, S. M., & Zee, P. C. (2022). Light exposure during sleep impairs cardiometabolic function. Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America, 119(12). 
[6.] Preciado, O. U., Issolio, L. A., Manzano, E., Colombo, E., & Barrionuevo, P. A. (2018). Melanopsin excitation in conditions of natural and artificial lighting. Anales de La Asociacion Fisica Argentina, 29(Especial InVision).

 


No more afternoon slump
 
Do you often find yourself reaching for an afternoon cup of coffee or tea to get over the 2pm slump? Whilst this may feel like the pick-me-up you need first thing in the morning it may be adversely impacting your sleep later in the day due to the caffeine content.

Caffeine’s ability to motivate and increase the sensation of alertness is thought to be due to its interactions with dopamine. Dopamine is one of the brain's most important neurotransmitters as it is responsible for feelings of pleasure, satisfaction, and motivation. Caffeine does not lead to an increase in the release of dopamine but rather strengthens the potential response dopamine has on the mind by making more of it bind to receptors within the body.1,2,3,4
After the spike of dopamine concentration hits its peak, it begins to drop back down again and importantly drops below the starting baseline and requires greater stimulation to get to the high level previously achieved. This was an important evolutionary feature that ensured animals repeated behaviours that increased their likelihood of survival (feeding, mating etc.). Sadly, as a modern human, this dopamine slump in the reward cascade often manifests as afternoon sluggishness, an inability to retain information or think critically.1,5,6

Understanding this can help to plan your caffeine intake to make the most of its performance-enhancing capabilities whilst minimizing the negative drawbacks. There is data to suggest that postponing caffeine consumption after waking for at least 1.5-2hrs helps to fully reset the body's circadian rhythm through natural rises in cortisol and maximise the body's energy production. In addition, caffeine intake should be limited to 10 hours before you intend to sleep due to the time taken to metabolise through the body. This impact on sleep can form a negative feedback loop where caffeine is consumed early in the morning in an attempt to regain or offset this sleep deficiency.7,8,9 
 
[1.] Volkow, N. D., Wang, G. J., Logan, J., Alexoff, D., Fowler, J. S., Thanos, P. K., Wong, C., Casado, V., Ferre, S., & Tomasi, D. (2015). Caffeine increases striatal dopamine D2/D3 receptor availability in the human brain. Translational Psychiatry, 5(4).
2. Mohebi, A., Pettibone, J. R., Hamid, A. A., Wong, J. M. T., Vinson, L. T., Patriarchi, T., Tian, L., Kennedy, R. T., & Berke, J. D. (2019). Dissociable dopamine dynamics for learning and motivation. Nature, 570(7759).
3. Blum, K., McLaughlin, T., Bowirrat, A., Modestino, E. J., Baron, D., Gomez, L. L., Ceccanti, M., Braverman, E. R., Thanos, P. K., Cadet, J. L., Elman, I., Badgaiyan, R. D., Jalali, R., Green, R., Simpatico, T. A., Gupta, A., & Gold, M. S. (2022). Reward Deficiency Syndrome (RDS) Surprisingly Is Evolutionary and Found Everywhere: Is It “Blowin’ in the Wind”? Journal of Personalized Medicine, 12(2).
4. Blum, K., Cshen, A. L. C., Giordano, J., Borsten, J., Chen, T. J. H., Hauser, M., Simpatico, T., Femino, J., Braverman, E. R., & Barh, D. (2012). The addictive brain: All roads lead to dopamine. Journal of Psychoactive Drugs, 44(2).
5. Cools, R., & D’Esposito, M. (2011). Inverted-U-shaped dopamine actions on human working memory and cognitive control. In Biological Psychiatry (Vol. 69, Issue 12).
6. Clark, I., & Landolt, H. P. (2017). Coffee, caffeine, and sleep: A systematic review of epidemiological studies and randomized controlled trials. In Sleep Medicine Reviews r(Vol. 31, pp. 70–78). W.B. Saunders Ltd.
7. Roehrs, T., & Roth, T. (2008). Caffeine: Sleep and daytime sleepiness. In Sleep Medicine Reviews (Vol. 12, Issue 2, pp. 153–162).
8. Nehlig, A., Daval, J. L., & Debry, G. (1992). Caffeine and the central nervous system: mechanisms of action, biochemical, metabolic and psychostimulant effects. In Brain Research Reviews (Vol. 17, Issue 2, pp. 139–170).
9. Clark, I., & Landolt, H. P. (2017). Coffee, caffeine, and sleep: A systematic review of epidemiological studies and randomized controlled trials. In Sleep Medicine Reviews (Vol. 31, pp. 70–78). W.B. Saunders Ltd.
 
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