Relaxing Music Increases Sleep Spindles and Improve Sleep Quality

Insomnia is a highly prevalent sleep disorder. A simple way to improve sleep quality has great importance. In this study, we analyzed EEG data recoded from subjects during sleep in three types of sound environments: silence, environmental noise, and relaxing music. We used an automatic spindle detection algorithm to evaluate the sleep quality from the viewpoint of spindle occurrence. The results showed that the number of sleep spindles increased in seven of eleven subjects. Among five subjects with poor sleep efficacy, four subjects had increased number of spindles under the relaxing music environment. This study indicated that the relaxing music environment could improve the sleep quality, particularly in subjects with insomnia.