Measure Blood Pressure via Blood Pressure Watch
Monitoring your blood pressure is essential since this biometric tells you what’s happening within your body. It’s crucial to monitor your blood pressure readings, especially as you age or if you’re pregnant, even if you don’t have high blood pressure that has been diagnosed or a family history of the condition. Undiagnosed and untreated blood pressure can host a lot of ailments that can be dangerous for your body. Therefore, you can adjust your diet, exercise, and lifestyle if you know your pressure.
It’s best to have access to the ability to take measurements often because blood pressure might change throughout the day. However, most individuals could only obtain an appropriate blood pressure reading at a physician’s office in the past. Although consumer-friendly blood pressure devices may be used at home, they might not be comfortable to wear all day.
However, thanks to technological advancements, people may now check their blood pressure using wristwatches. Does this sound ridiculous? You may wonder how a complex mechanism can be easily tracked on a blood pressure watch. Technology makes it possible, and you can now monitor and keep track of your pressure as often as you want via blood pressure monitor watches and fitness trackers.
Using a hand-tightened cuff to assess blood flow pressure, clinicians utilize a digital blood pressure monitor. In the case of a smartwatch, it’s different. Smartwatches monitor health data and measure them through a sensor attached to the back of it. More specifically, these smart watches use heart sensors known as optical heart rate sensors or ECG for measuring blood pressure.
Method 1: Using ECG technology
It calculates how long a pulse travels from the heart to the wrist. It also employs Pulse Transit Time (PTT), another term for it, to show blood pressure readings. The pulse transit time is influenced by both blood pressure and is quicker in high blood pressure and slower in low blood pressure. Because it takes longer to examine variations, this technology takes longer to calculate blood pressure measurements. To precisely measure blood pressure, experts advise temporarily blocking the blood flow with a strap or cuff. It enables the heart to circulate blood around the body with the necessary power. The wristwatch measures the time it takes for blood to get from the heart to your wrist and then displays your blood pressure. This is how smartwatches assess a person’s blood pressure.
Method 2: Using PPG (Photoplethysmography)
A light sensor is used in photoplethysmography to measure blood flow through the arteries. The heart rate may fluctuate due to volume changes, resulting in different blood pressure readings. This approach has a drawback in that to retain correct data, you must calibrate the wristwatch using a conventional blood pressure monitor at first and then every four weeks after that. Along with third-party apps like Qardio, the Apple Watch monitors blood pressure using PPG and ECG sensors.
Can you take a reliable wrist blood pressure reading?
According to the American Heart Association Trusted Source, upper arm cuff-style blood pressure monitors are said to give more reliable readings than wrist or finger monitors. One explanation for this is the requirement that the monitor is placed at the heart level with the upper arm lying close to the heart to acquire a blood pressure measurement.
Some watches follow instructions to keep your wrist on your heart during readings to mimic the values obtained by upper arm blood pressure monitors. You may acquire the most accurate measurement possible by following these guidelines.
Comparing your watch’s readings to those obtained in a medical environment is useful for assessing its accuracy. You may accomplish this by bringing your watch to your doctor’s appointment and testing yourself immediately after the doctor reads your upper arm cuff.
The dilemma now emerges is whether you should take your blood pressure using a wristwatch. Well, this problem doesn’t really have an obvious answer. Professional equipment is generally needed to measure blood pressure or any other health parameter correctly.
Both modern digital blood pressure monitors and conventional manual blood pressure monitors regularly monitor blood flow. Physicians recommend these monitors for precise data since they are also rapid and reliable. The use of a wristwatch to measure blood pressure is still in its infancy.
Smartwatches employ the PAT or PTT approach to gauge the time it takes for the pulse to pass from the heart to the wrist. Additionally, this approach needs periodic calibration using common blood pressure monitors. Furthermore, it is not very precise since the readings might vary more often when a person is engaged in an intensive activity.
When compared to smartwatches that use optical heart rate sensors, ECG watches are more accurate. However, medical professionals and academics still advise against relying solely on smartwatches to track blood pressure. It may be used to obtain a broad understanding of your daily blood pressure readings.
Wrapping Up
In a nutshell, smartwatches may provide you with accurate readings of your blood pressure. However, there isn’t any detailed or proven study. To get the most consistent and accurate result, use a smartwatch mainly designed for this purpose. It will be a mile better than using any fitness tracker having this feature as an add-on. Blood pressure monitor watches may be useful for those who want to check their readings numerous times a day. People who want to monitor their blood pressure and heart rate before and after exercising may benefit from fitness trackers with this capability. Med watches offer a wide range of smartwatches that provides the most precise blood pressure results and are budget-friendly. These blood pressure watches are also certified by top health agencies and use the latest technology to measure your blood pressure and give the most accurate result.
Check out MedWatch's Blood Pressure Watch by clicking here: Med-Watch