Solomon Siegel’s home in Victoria has a smart-light network that mimics the day-to-night light sequence, aligning with the body’s circadian rhythm to support better sleep and energy.Chad Hipolito
Victoria restaurateur, real estate investor and father Solomon Siegel used to struggle with sleep – until his house came to the rescue.
Mr. Siegel had long relied on smart-home technology to make his home more efficient, comfortable and secure. But in recent years, his technology-enabled home – from smart speakers to wellness lighting and digital locks – has evolved beyond convenience to help improve his health and emotional well-being.
An August Smart Lock deadbolt, for example – which syncs with his phone and smartwatch, allowing him to lock and unlock the door with a tap – helps simplify his daily routine.
“I used to spend half the day looking for my keys,” says Mr. Siegel, who has ADHD (attention-deficit hyperactivity disorder). “Now I don’t even carry them anymore. Having fewer things to worry about removes stress from my life.”
It’s one of many small changes that add up to a noticeable improvement in how he feels, both mentally and physically. Among his growing collection of smart technologies – which also includes a voice- and motion-activated utility system – is wellness lighting by Philips Hue.
The multihued smart light network mimics the day-to-night light sequence, aligning with the body’s circadian rhythm to support better sleep and energy. As Mr. Siegel’s day winds down, his home lights soften and eventually dim, helping him relax and get ready for a good night’s sleep.
In the morning, the calibrated hues simulate a natural sunrise, suppressing melatonin and increasing energy-promoting cortisol to ease him into a more energized start to the day.
“The lighting isn’t grating – it’s indirect and just feels better to live in,” he says. “My eyes are light-sensitive, so I get headaches with fluorescent and overhead lighting. This is easier on my eyes, and it’s a more natural way to wake up.”
His teenage daughter’s bedroom has a similar lighting system, but it is augmented with a timed morning playlist. “So, she just yells at Siri for waking her up – and not at me,” he says with a laugh.
Some of the nighttime lighting is motion-sensitive, so there’s no fumbling around for light switches, he adds.
Since comfortable night temperature can also improve sleep (not to mention minimize respiratory issues caused by temperature fluctuations), Mr. Siegel uses an Ecobee smart thermostat, which automatically maintains the Sleep Foundation’s recommended optimum sleep range of 15.6 to 20 degrees Celsius.
Meanwhile, an AI-powered Dyson air purifier, featuring real-time air-quality monitoring, automatically detects and captures pollutants such as dust, gases, odours, allergens and wildfire smoke.
“There are those days when the air quality gets bad from smoke coming in, so having the Dyson scrub the air a bit is good for your lungs,” says Mr. Siegel.
A deadbolt on Siegel’s door is connected to his phone and smartwatch, allowing him to lock and unlock the door with a tap. “I used to spend half the day looking for my keys,” he says. “Now I don’t even carry them anymore.”Chad Hipolito
Health-care revolution
Like many Canadians, Mr. Siegel spends more time inside his home these days. In fact, Canada now leads the world in remote work among college-educated professionals, with nearly two full workdays per week spent at home, according to the latest Global Survey of Working Arrangements.
This shift, coupled with a proliferation of health-conscious homeowners, is fuelling a robust Canadian smart home market. According to Statista, the market is expected to double by 2032, from $4.3-billion to $8.8-billion by 2032. The report also notes that household penetration of smart home technology is just shy of 90 per cent. (Thank you, smartphones.)
This ubiquity is good news for Dr. Kendall Ho, an emergency physician in Vancouver and professor in the Faculty of Medicine at the University of British Columbia, who specializes in virtual and digital emergency care. He says tech-enabled houses like Mr. Siegel’s create environments that “can help people live healthier lives.”
But beyond optimizing sleep, breathing and other conditions for health and well-being, Dr. Ho says smart houses can offer much more. The greatest promise of the country’s high prevalence of smart homes lies in the potential to revolutionize acute and emergency health care, he says.
“Emergency department reports show that four to six patients out of 10 don’t need to be in the emergency ward.”
— Dr. Kendall Ho, emergency physician
Some Canadian jurisdictions have already launched Hospital at Home programs that offer eligible patients hospital-level care in their homes.
Typically, smart home technologies required for the program include medical monitoring devices like smart wearables, along with a computer equipped with video conferencing software to allow remote contact between patients and clinicians.
However, Dr. Ho notes that with a smartphone alone, the Hospital at Home program, including emergency room care, could be a viable option.
That’s because the doctor, in collaboration with National Research Council Canada, has developed an easy-to-use and accurate way for people to measure their vital signs at home.
Called VitalSeer, the tool is free and can be installed on a smartphone, computer or tablet to measure heart rate, respiratory rate and oxygen saturation. The scientifically validated data, collected from the software’s medical-grade face scanner, can be shared with the health care professionals and emergency room doctors.
Chest pain in the middle of the night?
“Emergency department reports show that four to six patients out of 10 don’t need to be in the emergency ward,” says Dr. Ho.
Someone waking up at 3 a.m. with chest pains may think they’re having a heart attack, but chest pain can be due to a range of conditions like indigestion or inflamed ribs.
“Often, the first thought is to get to Emergency,” says Dr. Ho, “but we could provide an assessment if the person has the right equipment at home. If their heart rate is 150 instead of 80 – right away, I will have a recommendation: ‘Go to Emergency.’ But if VitalSeer shows a normal heart rate, I can continue to assess the situation.”
Filling an equity gap
Dr. Ho sees VitalSeer as a tool that fills the equity gap in health care. “In my experience, very few people who call their province’s telehealth service have the advanced home technology to give the nurse information about their vital signs. VitalSeer is for those people, since the app only requires a smartphone.”
Though still in testing stages, Dr. Ho envisions a time when everyone uses VitalSeer. “In the old days, if we needed to shop, we would drive downtown. Today, we go online first,” he says. “In the future, when we have an urgent health issue, we’ll check VitalSeer first before going to Emergency.”
