Smartwatch Data Rears More Anxiety
Many patients, often young men, depend heavily on wearable tech for tracking sleep, said Raymond Vogels of the Ruysdael Sleep Clinic. Some of the information is useful, Vogels added; many users, though, get fixated on sleep scores, with the attendant stress and unrealistic expectations.

These scores also had psychological consequences, the Dutch Sleep Institute's Lisette Venekamp said.

"An app that gives a poor rating can make people think they're sleep-deprived when they may feel just fine," she said. "This can create anxiety where there's not a real actual concern."

Perceived vs Real Mismatch
"Disturbed sleep patterns" as a result of too many nighttime awakenings is also a type of misinformation, says sleep physician Sebastiaan Overeem of the Kempenhaeghe Sleep Medicine Center, as people often view the wake-ups as symptoms of a disorder - even after clinical tests have revealed no medical issue.

"Patients often trust their smartwatch data over a professional's diagnosis," he said.

Venekamp has also lamented the rise of trying to equate sleep with as concrete a number as a temperature. "Some people are fully rested after five hours, but their app is making it insufficient," she said.

"Everyone's sleep's look a little different."

Devices Lack Medical Accuracy
Experts noted that smart.