SBIR Phase I: Restoring natural sleep for adolescents: circadian clock advancement at night assisted with mobile application-delivered cognitive behavioral therapy

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The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is to address chronic sleep deprivation among American teenagers, which has only been made worse by the recent pandemic. Adolescents' natural internal circadian clocks typically run 1-3 hours later than adults, leading to the tendency to stay up late, difficulty falling asleep, insufficient total sleep time, and morning grogginess. This project is designed to improve sleep for adolescents and young adults by advancing their circadian clocks leading to healthier sleep. Today, there are almost 42 million adolescents in the United States aged 11-19, and another 18.9 million young adults aged 20-24, making the commercial potential of this project to be a $10 Billion market opportunity in the United States alone.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project is commercializing an innovation in sleep therapy. Approximately half of all American adolescents and young adults in the United States do not get enough sleep. Cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) for insomnia has been somewhat effective when administered by a therapist in person, but the in-person model is not scalable. Lack of sleep can negatively impact physical and neurocognitive development, leading to inability to concentrate, poor grades, higher risk of diabetes and long-term cardiovascular problems, and increased risk of mental health issues, depression, and suicide. The proposed solution applies recent sleep research and innovates it into a product worn at night and plans to go to market with an integrated solution of both the product hardware and telehealth support. Healthier sleep brought by this solution may lead to better recovery, improved memories and concentration, and enhanced neurocognitive and physical development. It may also reduce the risks for depression and other mental health issues. The enhanced physical and mental health may have other positive impacts in society, for example, reducing healthcare costs and preventing accidents caused by sleep deprivation. Short light pulses may alter circadian phases of human subjects during sleep. Based on light flash technology, the team proposes creating a smart sleep mask that emits light flashes at night during sleep to effectively advance teenagers’ circadian phases without disrupting their daytime activities. This light flash technology will be assisted with cognitive behavioral therapy (CBT) delivered via a mobile application to promote earlier bedtime and better sleep hygiene.This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.