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© 2019 Acta Medica International | Published by Wolters Kluwer ‑ Medknow 33
Original Article
IntroductIon
The built environment has some effects on human’s physical
and mental well‑being.[1] Improvements in housing can enhance
well‑being and the quality of life. Issues of the design layout in
houses have been shown to affect inhabitants, for example, the
high rise can cause psychological distress,[2] different interior
forms can affect stress and emotion,[3] and bedroom design
style affects comfortability and pleasantness.[4] Other lines of
evidence suggested that orientation can have some effects on
inhabitants’ health and well‑being.[5]
Orientation is one of the design factors that most were the subject
of energy studies. Usually, a compromise between building’s
function and location and the environmental factors of heat,
light, humidity, and wind as well as religious and practical
issues in some regions are the issues for building orientation.[6]
Furthermore, there are some methods in east architecture
to orient the building[7] that may increase inhabitants’
well‑being,[8,9] especially the bedroom orientation.[10] Overall,
the effects of the building orientation on well‑being have
not been proved yet. Hence, this study tried to assess it in
neuroarchitecture eld to see the effects of orientation on
inhabitants’ brain dynamics. Neuroarchitecture is a new eld
that is focused on the neural effects of the built environments
and users.[11,12] Studies showed that the different spaces of daily
life can change brain dynamics and behaviors.[13] Recent studies
using electroencephalography (EEG) and functional magnetic
resonance imaging in architecture,[14] interior design,[4,15]
and urban design[16] indicate the usage of neuroscience in
architecture. As one‑third of our lives are spent sleeping[17]
Abstract
Background: Orientation is a signicant factor in architectural design that may affect well‑being. Body direction does not change during
sleeping, and sleeping is sensitive and affected by environmental factors. Aims: This neuroarchitecture study aimed to assess the effects of bed
orientation on sleep quality to enhance bedroom design. Materials and Methods: To do so, the effects of earth’s electromagnetic eld (EMF)
on sleep electroencephalography (EEG) signals were evaluated using signal processing techniques. In this cross‑sectional study, a total of 21
healthy volunteer participants slept for two consecutive naps, at two rooms with identical interior design and different bed orientations, toward and
against earth’s EMF in a sleep clinic. Statistical Analysis: In this experiment, discrete wavelet transform extracted ve subfrequencies of EEG
data as delta, theta, alpha, beta1, and beta2. In addition, the energy signals were computed by measurement of wave frequencies. The mean total
sleep time was 1.63 h in North–South (N‑S) earth’s EMF orientation and 1.38 h in the other direction. Results: t‑test results showed signicant
changes in delta, theta, and alpha frequencies in terms of bed orientation. There was a signicant result in the alpha energy ratio over the whole
signal energy. Furthermore, there were increases in the average energy of delta, theta, and alpha bands in N‑S versus East–West (E‑W) bed
directions. Conclusions: This study indicated that sleep in N‑S direction could be more benecial than E‑W and the sleep EEG signals can be
sensitive to earth’s EMF. The results show the importance of considering orientation in bedroom design and its benets on inhabitants’ well‑being.
Keywords: Bedroom design, earth’s electromagnetic eld, neuroarchitecture, sleeping orientation
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DOI:
10.4103/ami.ami_60_18
Address for correspondence: Dr. Maryam Banaei,
School of Architecture and Environmental Design, Iran University of Science
and Technology, University St., Hengam St., Resalat Square, Tehran, Iran.
E‑mail: banaei@arch.iust.ac.ir
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How to cite this article: Hekmatmanesh A, Banaei M, Haghighi KS,
Naja A. Bedroom design orientation and sleep electroencephalography
signals. Acta Med Int 2019;6:33‑7.
Bedroom Design Orientation and Sleep Electroencephalography
Signals
Amin Hekmatmanesh, Maryam Banaei1, Khosro Sadeghniiat Haghighi2, Arezu Najafi2
Laboratory of Intelligent Machines, Department of Mechanical Engineering, Lappeenranta University of Technology, Lappeenranta, Finland
1School of Architecture and Environmental Design, Iran University of Science and Technology, 2Occupational Sleep Research Center, Baharloo Hospital,
Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran
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Hekmatmanesh, et al.: Bed orientation and sleep EEG
Acta Medica International ¦ Volume 6 ¦ Issue 1 ¦ January-June 2019
34
and the body direction does not change during sleeping in the
bedroom, bedroom orientation is chosen to examine its effects
on brain dynamics and sleep quality in this study.
Orientation related to the earth’s electromagnetic eld (EMF)
is the one that can inuence a human’s life like an animal’s
migration or bird’s nest.[18,19] Studying on cattle and deer showed
that they align their body axes in a roughly North–South (N-S)
direction for grazing and resting.[18] In addition, the effect of
EMF on mood and behavior was studied.[20] Another study
showed that those who were instructed to sleep with head in
south direction for 12 weeks had the lowest systolic blood
pressure, diastolic blood pressure, heart rate, and serum
cortisol.[21]
Specifically for the field of sleeping, ample of evidence
suggest that EMFs can affect sleep. Besides, spectral analysis
revealed qualitative alterations of the EEG signal during
rapid eye movement (REM) sleep with an increased spectral
power density that the alpha frequency range was mainly
affected.[20] Furthermore, another research regarding orientation
and sleep indicated that the REM latency is shortened in the
East–West (E-W) direction during sleep compared to the N-S
position.[22] There were statistically signicant differences in
the EEG of normal individuals, depending on whether the
individuals sit facing the N-S or E-W direction.
Limited evidence exists regarding the effect of bed orientation
on sleep parameters and quality of sleep. This study aimed
to assess the differences between sleeping toward or against
earth’s EMF on sleep EEG to shed new light on orientation
in architectural design and enhancing the bedroom design
quality. Bedrooms are ruled by bed size and its location[23]
that orientation is part of it. This study tried to achieve better
residential design solutions by scientic evidence, especially
for small apartments, which inhabitants do not have the
opportunity to change the bed orientation. Furthermore, it can
be useful in a hotel and hospital designing that room orientation
has a signicant effect on the whole design. Thus, we designed
a study to compare bed orientation in terms of EEG signals in
two similar bedrooms at a standard sleep clinic.
MatErials and MEthods
A total of 94 volunteer individuals were evaluated to participate
in the current study. A written informed consent form was
obtained from all eligible study participants. The study was
approved by the Ethical Committee of Tehran University of
Medical Sciences. The participants with a history of sleep
problems, taking alcohol or smoking, and problems with
recorded polysomnography were excluded from the study.
Participants were completely evaluated regarding sleep
problems using validated sleep questionnaires including
the Stanford Sleepiness Scale, Epworth Sleepiness Scale,
STOP-BANG questionnaire, Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index,
and Insomnia Severity Index. Participants were advised not to
use caffeine at least 4 h before the test. Furthermore, they did
not use any drugs affecting sleep. The beds were positioned
in two different directions: N-S, in the direction of the earth’s
EMF, and E-W, perpendicular to the earth’s EMF [Figure 1].
The rooms were equipped identical ones standardized for
light and acoustic characteristics; room dimensions were
3.0 m × 4.0 m × 2.8 m (W × L × H). Participants were divided
into two groups: N-S orientation with six male and ve female
participants and E-W orientation with six male and four female
participants. Participants of the two groups were asked to sleep
for two consecutive afternoon naps. The duration of each nap
was 1 h and 30 min on average, and after 24 h, participants
of each group underwent a second nap. The two groups were
then compared regarding sleep EEG characteristics.
In the day of the rst nap, participants attended in the sleep
clinic around 12:30 PM. After having lunch, EEG electrodes
were installed and they prepared for sleeping around 1 PM.
Participants were told to sleep as much as they wanted.
Polysomnography was recorded by Embla device
(N7000 version) at Baharloo Hospital, a sleep clinic. Sleep
signals were recorded according to 10–20 standards with
ten channels monopolarly with reference to both mastoids.
Channels included C3-M2, C4-M1, Cz-M1, F4-M1,
F3-M2, Fz-M1, T3-M2, T4-M1, O2-M1, and O1-M2.
Two channels for electrooculography and two for chin
were used to record signals. Sleep scoring was performed
according to the American Academy of Sleep Medicine
(AASM guideline 2007) by a trained sleep physician.
Frequency sampling and impedance check were adjusted
200 Hz and 10 KOhm, respectively.
To extract delta, theta, alpha, beta1, and beta2 frequency bands,
discrete wavelet transform (DWT) was used. First, signals
were ltered by 32 Hz low-pass lter, Chebyshev type 2 with
order 16. This innite impulse response lter makes phase
distortion – this distortion eliminated by applying zero-phase
digital ltering by processing the input data in both forward
and reverse directions.[24]
Signals were divided into 30-s windows, and then, DWT with
Daubechies mother wavelet with order 10 (db10) was applied
on the signals. The signals were divided into seven bands based
on their frequencies and then the energies were calculated. The
specic bands were delta (0–4 Hz), theta (4–8 Hz), alpha (8–12
Hz), beta1 (16–24 Hz), and beta2 (24–32 Hz). Furthermore,
Figure 1: Two similar rooms with different bed orientations. Left: toward
the electromagnetic field, Right: against electromagnetic field
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Hekmatmanesh, et al.: Bed orientation and sleep EEG
Acta Medica International ¦ Volume 6 ¦ Issue 1 ¦ January-June 2019 35
the spindle and K-complex frequency ranges were (8–16
Hz) extracted. All these energy bands were calculated and
normalized between 0 and 1. Recorded data were analyzed using
(The Mathworks, Inc., Natick, MA, USA) MATLAB software
version 2014. P < 0.05 was considered statistically signicant.
rEsults
A total of 94 participants were entered for primary evaluation
in this study and 73 were excluded due to underlying sleep
problems and/or technical problems of recorded EEG; among
them, 21 participants had eligible data for nal analysis. The
mean age of participants was 23.5 years.[21-25] Signals were
recorded and the average energy of specic bands extracted.
T-test was used to compare the results of N-S and E-W
orientations, which is represented in Table 1. Table 2 represents
energy ratio (ER) bands such as delta ER over delta and theta
energies, theta ER over delta energies, and alpha ER over
delta and theta energies calculated in average, to assess the
signicance of differences between these two groups. The
mean total sleep time was 1 h and 38 min in earth’s EMF (N-S)
orientation and 1 h and 23 min in the other group.
The percentage of alpha, delta, and theta signal activity ratio
to total energy showed that they have signicant results in
t-test according to the EMF [Table 2] (P = 0.006, 0.007, and
0.01, respectively). In addition, the only signicance frequency
band ER over the whole signal energy was alpha (P < 0.05).
The REM latency and slow-wave sleep (SWS) latency
increased toward the EMF, but it was only signicant for
the REM latency (P < 0.04). The number of arousals and
awakenings during sleep increased signicantly in the E-W
orientation (P < 0.01).
For the E-W orientation, the time for the second sleep stage
and SWS decreased, but the P values were not statistically
signicant (P > 0.05). Furthermore, the whole period of
sleeping time decreased for the E-W orientation (P < 0.001).
discussion
The current results provided evidence that sleeping toward
N-S direction or toward earth’s EMF could improve sleep
quality. The results could be used in the design of bedrooms
subsequently. Sleeping toward the EMF (N-S) inuenced
alpha and delta signals of sleep. The average of energy bands
increased in the N-S orientation, especially in terms of alpha
and delta signals.
The length of the time that a person was in bed to the whole
time of sleeping is dened as sleep efciency.[25] The alpha
signal affects sleep quality; thus, the length and depth of each
sleep stage can change by alpha alterations.[26] The present
findings showed more awakening and arousals in E-W
direction which subsequently increases alpha changes and
decreases sleep quality. However, Ruhenstroth-Bauer et al.
Table 2: Different ratio of the signal’s energy in terms of North‑South and East‑West directions
Signals energies Frequency range (Hz) Normalized average energy N‑S orientation Normalized average energy E‑W orientation P
Alpha/(delta+theta) Alpha ratio to delta and
theta
0.8685 0.6425 0.412*
Delta/(theta+alpha) Delta ratio to theta and
alpha
0.6149 0.3144 0.008**
Theta/(delta+alpha) Theta ratio to delta and
alpha
0.4615 0.8545 0.289*
Alpha/total energy Percentage of alpha
activity
0.8673 0.7195 0.022*
Theta/total energy Percentage of theta
activity
0.3669 0.8460 0.251*
Delta/total energy Percentage of delta
activity
0.4713 0.7119 0.272*
Spindle and
k-complex/total energy
Percentage of spindle
and k-complex activity
0.4713 0.6889 0.272*
*Statistically signicant at P<0.05, **Statistically signicant at P<0.01. N-S: North-South, E-W: East-West
Table 1: Signal’s energy of North‑South and East‑West bed‑oriented groups
Signal energies Frequency range (Hz) Normalized average energy N‑S orientation Normalized average energy E‑W orientation P
Delta 0-4 0.6905 0.9892 0.007**
Theta 4-8 0.6088 0.2792 0.006**
Alpha 8-12 0.6811 0.2893 0.010*
Beta116-24 0.5257 0.2742 0.083*
Beta224-32 0.5215 0.1394 0.185*
Spindle and
K-complex
8-16 0.4922 0.2445 0.016*
*Statistically signicant at P<0.05; **statistically signicant at P<0.01. N-S: North-South, E-W: East-West
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Hekmatmanesh, et al.: Bed orientation and sleep EEG
Acta Medica International ¦ Volume 6 ¦ Issue 1 ¦ January-June 2019
36
did not report signicant different arousals and awakenings
in the two sleep directions (N-S vs. E-W; Ruhenstroth-Bauer,
1987). Different methods of the two studies (daytime nap in
present study vs. night sleep in the aforementioned study) may
interpret the different results. The other explanation of the
different results in terms of arousals and awakenings and/or
other sleep parameters between these two studies may be the
number of studied EEG channels. In the current study, more
EEG channels were studied and the evaluation of sleep studies
was performed by a trained sleep physician manually; thus, the
number of detected arousals and awakenings could be more
compared to the study by Ruhenstroth-Bauer et al.
Moreover, in this research, REM latency of participants increased
during sleeping in N-S direction. Consistent with this study,
Ruhenstroth-Bauer et al. indicated shortened REM latency in
E-W direction. This evidence conrms Ruhenstroth-Bauer’s
assumption that the geomagnetic eld inuences human sleep
EEG depending on the sleeping orientation (N-S vs. E-W).
Participants in the E-W group had decreased total sleep time
comparing to the ones slept toward the geomagnetic eld.
Shortened sleep for a long period negatively affects data
processing (decoding) during the sleep.[27-30] Thus, designing
bedrooms in which beds are oriented toward earth’s EMF may
be associated with improved sleep and a higher quality of life.
More investigation in standard equipped sleep laboratories
with manual analysis of sleep EEG by experts is warranted
and recommended for future studies. Although improving
sleep without medical intervention and just by changing bed
orientation with the least complication and investment when
compared with medical interventions seems more sophisticated,
this study shows the importance of considering orientation as a
factor that can inuence well-being. Using and implementation of
neuroarchitecture is a new evolving research area that needs more
elucidation in the eld of sleep medicine. As such, interventions
in architecture may be used for the treatment of different sleep
disorders or as preventive measures in the sleep medicine world.
Available data regarding the effects of bed orientation in the
treatment of sleep disorders or as preventive measures are lacking
and require more elucidation and interdisciplinary collaboration.
The present ndings also indicated that the participants who
were in the N-S orientation had more K-complexes and
spindles, but only the increase of spindles was signicant.
Furthermore, the energy of specic bands extracted and studied
and the results show that the changes can be because of the
orientation toward the EMF during the sleep. This nding is
not reported by Ruhenstroth-Bauer et al. study. Although the
methods and time of sleep studies were different, apparently
more EEG signals and manual analysis by a sleep physician
could represent more accurate ndings in terms of sleep stages
and number of detected sleep spindles and K-complexes.
conclusions
The present study findings provide evidence that bed
orientation inuences sleep EEG signals and sleeping toward
the EMF (N-S) can have some positive effects on the sleep
EEG. The results can be used to enhance bedroom design.
Further investigation in this eld and also the inuence of
geomagnetic eld in the prevention and treatment of various
sleep disorders are recommended.
This study sheds new light on the importance of orientation
and its effect on brain dynamics. It is one of the rst studies
in neuroarchitecture that used sleep EEG for bedroom design.
Unlike many neuroarchitecture studies, the results of the
current study are practical. According to the limitations of this
study such as region of the experiment, age, and the number of
participants, further studies with more sample size are required
to recommend some principles and rules for improving
bedroom design and having better sleep. Furthermore, the lack
of similar studies in EMF and sleep EEG in healthy individuals
is another important limitation of the current study.
Acknowledgments
This work was supported by Baharloo Hospital, and all data
recording was performed in the sleep clinic of Baharloo Hospital
in Tehran. We would like to thank Mr. Saman Syfpour for his kind
assistance in data recording. This manuscript is the full version
with some revision on data analysis of the study that was accepted
for the poster presentation at the Congress of the European Sleep
Research Society. The abstract was published in the Journal of
Sleep Research volume 23, supplementary 1, Special Issue:
Abstracts of the 22nd Congress of the European Sleep Research
Society, 16–20 September 2014, Tallinn, Estonia, p. 159.
Financial support and sponsorship
Nil.
Conflicts of interest
There are no conicts of interest.
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