By: Nick Gambino
Ever since it marched onto the scene, the Apple Watch has been so much more than a watch. Much like the iPhone is so much more than a phone, this wearable device has become a wealth of information, giving users an insight into how their body operates.
You can track things like steps taken, calories burned, heart rate, menstrual cycle and so much more. Now, thanks to FDA clearance, the Apple Watch can detect whether you suffer from sleep apnea.
Available on WatchOS 11, the detection feature tracks breathing disturbances indicated by the slightest wrist movements. These disturbances are often signs that the wearer stopped breathing, even if only for a moment. If someone’s breathing halts while they are dozing, that’s essentially sleep apnea.
Now this is not a perfect system and Apple knows that. The alerts you’ll get suggest you possibly have moderate or severe sleep apnea, depending on how many breathing disturbances the Watch detects.
As with all fitness and health tracking, you can find this data in the resident Health app. Hopefully this will be useable information for doctors to work with. I’m sure it won’t replace serious sleep studies, but it should at least help guide healthcare professionals to where they should be looking for issues.
Apple has regularly added features to the Watch that make it a big sell for those who value fitness and health. However, it doesn’t come without its complications.
Earlier this year, Apple was forced to remove the blood oxygen monitoring feature that gave wearers an insight into their blood pressure. Masimo, a health tech company, filed a lawsuit, claiming copyright infringement on a patent they held for blood oxygen monitors. As a result, the ITC banned sales and President Biden upheld the ban. This almost killed the Apple Watch Series 9 and the Ultra 2.
There’s no sign that the sleep apnea detection feature is stepping on any toes. And with the FDA’s approval, Apple is clean and clear to add the functionality right away.
