Medication-free sleep treatment

An app-based sleep programme provides a holistic approach to tackling the root causes of insufficient sleep

Spotted: Today, getting enough sleep is considered on a par with eating right and getting enough exercise. The reason for this is that insufficient sleep has been associated with a host of negative outcomes – from poor performance in school and at work, to increased risk of heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and hypertension. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), a third of US adults report that they usually get less than the recommended amount of sleep – a pattern that is repeated around the world. Enter Moonoa, a new app and programme designed to get everyone sleeping again.

Moonoa bills itself as a “digital, personalised solution to improve your sleep naturally, without the use of medication”. Its approach is based on cognitive behavioural therapy CBT), which aims to work on behaviours, thoughts, and emotions that contribute to poor sleep. The platform’s comprehensive programme includes relaxation content to help reduce stress and anxiety and a ‘learning path’ with CBT-based advice and recommendations to help users “reframe behaviour, unrealistic expectations, and negative thoughts that are harmful to sleep”.

In addition to advice, Moonoa also offers sleep analysis and support from psychologist coaches, as well as a personalised food supplement sent to customers on a monthly basis based on their profile. The company takes a holistic approach to sleep improvement in an effort to help users establish predictable sleep patterns and take back control over their sleep. The programme has been certified as a medical device by both the Spanish Medicines Agency and the European Union.

According to the company, clinical studies indicate that a CBT-led approach to improving sleep leads to improvement in 90 per cent of patients.

Many approaches to sleep improvement have so far focused on the low-hanging fruit of tracking using wearables. Innovations in this space include a wearable ring that wakes wearers up at regular intervals as part of a sleep training regimen, and a smart pillow that monitors sleep by tracking head movements. Moonoa goes further by taking a holistic approach to tackling the underlying causes of bad sleep.

Written By: Lisa Magloff