Announcing the Winners of the 2025 Labfront x SRSF Sleep Research Grant

We're excited to announce the recipients of the 2025 Labfront x Sleep Research Society Foundation (SRSF) Sleep Research Grant. This grant supports researchers using consumer wearables to better understand and improve sleep health using Garmin actigraphy.

Each awardee will receive three Garmin vívosmart®5 devices, a one-year Labfront Advanced account, and the Labfront Actigraphy Duo analytics package, totaling a value of approximately $3,950 USD. 

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🏆 Meet the 2025 Grant Recipients

Dr. Jordana McMurray, University of Toronto

Sleep Regularity and Associations with Ecological Momentary Assessment of Anxiety in Undergraduate Students: A Pilot Study

Dr. McMurray’s study explores the link between sleep regularity and daily anxiety in undergraduate students. Eighteen students (ages 18–24) will track their sleep and report anxiety levels three times daily over two weeks using Labfront's sleep actigraphy and ecological momentary assessment (EMA). The goal is to inform future interventions that improve student well-being through more regular sleep.

Dr. Joshua Landvatter, University of Utah

Unraveling the Impact of Sleep Fragmentation on Blood Pressure Variability and Heart Rate Variability: A Wearable-Based Approach

Dr. Landvatter’s research investigates how fragmented sleep affects heart rate variability (HRV) and blood pressure variability (BPV) in adults with hypertension. Over seven days, participants will wear Garmin devices to monitor sleep and HRV, and Spacelabs monitors to measure BPV. Unlike lab-based studies, this project captures data in real-life settings. The team expects to find that poor sleep is associated with higher BPV and lower HRV, potential markers of cardiovascular risk.

Audrey Stegman, University of Utah

Nighttime Synchrony of Your Nutrition and Circadian health (N-SYNC)

This study examines how nutrition timing influences circadian health across three 7-day in-lab segments, each preceded by a two-week at-home baseline with a fixed sleep schedule. The team will use Labfront to monitor near-real-time sleep and physical activity data, improving adherence and streamlining data collection, something current tools can’t do efficiently.

Dr. Courtney Kurinec, Washington State University

Investigating the Role of Naturalistic Sleep on the Effectiveness of Misinformation Corrections

Dr. Kurinec’s study looks at how natural sleep patterns affect people’s ability to update their beliefs after being exposed to misinformation. Fifty adults, including shift workers, will wear sleep trackers for a week, then read fictional news stories with and without misinformation corrections. The study will test whether poor or short sleep makes people more likely to stick with false information even after it’s been corrected.

Dr. Mariana Szklo-Coxe, Old Dominion University

A Pilot Study Investigating Garmin Actigraphically-Assessed Sleep in Firefighters

Dr. Szklo-Coxe will track sleep and heart rate variability in firefighters over a 21-day work cycle using Garmin wearables. Firefighting is known for its intense demands and irregular sleep, both of which may raise cardiovascular risks. This study builds on previous research and may also examine how nutrition and behavior interact with sleep patterns.

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Moving Sleep Research Forward

These projects show how wearable tech can bring fresh insight into sleep health. By studying real-world patterns, each researcher is helping to shape a future where sleep science leads to better health and well-being.

Learn more about Labfront’s grant programs and how to apply at  labfront.com/grant.