By Linda Dahlstrom, health editor
What it is: HealthCare’s Snore Stopper, $49.95
What it claims to do: Reduce snoring and help the wearer sleep better and wake refreshed. The maker of this device, which you wear like a wristwatch, says it is based on the concept of biofeedback. When it detects snores, it is supposed to give a “barely noticeable” five-second electrical impulse on the wrist to triggers the snorer to change sleeping position or increase muscle tension in the throat to reduce snores.
Our experience: I learned the hard way that it’s not just snoring that this device detects. It also gave me the smack down when my dog barked and when I washed my hands before bed. But the biggest problem for me was that the sound of my 8-month-old son crying or babbling also set it off. I felt my stress level skyrocket every time my wrist buzzed as I held my crying son at 4 a.m.
In addition to being annoyed by it when I was awake, it also roused me from my sleep several times when I had the audacity to, apparently noisily, pull up my down comforter.
I’ve snored periodically since I was pregnant – much to my husband’s chagrin, so I hoped this device would help. But according to the love of my life, it didn’t. During the two weeks I wore it, he still poked, prodded - and once even held my nose - to prod me into rolling over just as often as when I wasn’t wearing the Snore Stopper.
What the expert says: The Snore Stopper’s tagline is “Silence him for health.” But for some, snoring itself isn’t the problem, says Dr. Carol Ash, medical director of the Sleep for Life Center at Somerset Medical Center in New Jersey. “Many reach for these devices without realizing there could be a more significant problem, such as sleep apnea.”
If you wake frequently during the night, feel tired all day or ever wake up gasping, see a doctor, she advises. But for those who simply saw logs a little too loudly at night, “if [the device] helps the snoring, great,” says Ash.
Some research does suggest that devices that cause electrical muscle stimulation may have some promise for stopping snoring, says Ash. But those are being used directly on the nerve, not the surface of the skin like the Snore Stopper.
Ash said it’s also possible that the buzzing that is supposed to prod the snorer to change position may pose a new problem. “It may help snoring, but if you’re rousing in sleep, the benefits are offset,” she says.
Bottom line: Despite its claims of a “great results,” this product didn’t work for me – and is probably not a good idea for anyone who has much ambient noise in the bedroom. Unfortunately, my husband will have to continue to serve as my snore stopper.
