How to read blood pressure on apple watch

The Apple Watch is a health and fitness-centric smartwatch that features a collection of sensors used to detect some of the wearer's vital signs, but is blood pressure monitoring supported? Apple's lineup of smartwatches includes various health features that can vary based on the model and series. The company has released a new Apple Watch each year since its introduction, but the product names and included features can get confusing. The first Apple Watch was dubbed 'series zero' by technology enthusiasts since it was left outside the current naming scheme. After the original model, the company released an all-new Apple Watch Series 2 and a stripped-down Apple Watch Series 1, each sporting the same fitness and health capabilities.

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However, things get even more complicated after that. The Apple Watch Series 3 was released a year later, and is still sold on Apple's website today. Each year after, the company added additional fitness and health features to the Apple Watch, including new hardware sensors. The Apple Watch SE — a cheaper version of the smartwatch with slightly limited features — has its own functionality separate from the Apple Watch Series 7. With that in mind, the available health sensors and tracking can vary by device, and the company typically improves on these functionalities with each upgrade.

Related: Why Custom Workouts Are A Game-Changer For Apple Watch

Though the Apple Watch features a collection of health sensors — from a heart rate sensor to an electrocardiogram to a blood oxygen sensor — true blood pressure monitoring is not supported on the smartwatch. A few applications claim to provide the functionality, but they fall short unless an external blood pressure monitor is connected. As per Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple plans to add blood pressure monitoring to the Apple Watch in the future along with other health sensors. These include blood glucose monitoring and blood alcohol tracking, but some of these features require government approval before being released to the public.

View BP Data On Apple Watch With An App

The Apple Watch doesn't provide a blood pressure monitor, but it does include a heart rate sensor and an electrocardiogram. This is good news for people concerned about hypertension, since heart rate and blood pressure have a positive correlation, according to a study by the University of Minnesota (via NCBI). Researchers concluded that "elevated heart rate is associated with increased peripheral blood pressure, increased risk for cardiovascular disease, and is modifiable." That means Apple Watch users might be able to get an idea of their blood pressure state through heart rate readings. However, if someone is concerned about their blood pressure or needs to track it for health reasons, using appropriate medical equipment is recommended.

There are also legitimate ways to track blood pressure using an Apple Watch, even though it isn't possible on-device. Third-party blood pressure monitors from brands like QardioArm, Withings, and iHealth can connect to Apple's Health app on the iPhone to provide blood pressure data. This data can then be viewed on the wearer's wrist with an Apple Watch app, which can be useful for constant monitoring. They work similarly to other health monitors, like constant glucose monitors, that continually collect data that can be viewed on Apple Watch. Although the Apple Watch doesn't include a blood pressure monitor yet, it can still provide a solid picture of the wearer's health.

The Apple Watch Series 8 is the newest addition to Apple's ever-growing smartwatch portfolio. Building upon the success of prior models, the new watch offers comprehensive health and fitness features, including continuous heart rate tracking, advanced sleep tracking, blood oxygen monitoring, and ECG. But there's one feature it's missing.

Well, can the Apple Watch Series 8 monitor your blood pressure?

The answer is no. The Apple Watch Series 8 doesn't offer blood pressure monitoring. This feature is available on some Samsung smartwatches but not on the Apple Watch. This may disappoint some users, but it's not a deal-breaker. The Apple Watch Series 8 is still a very capable smartwatch with many advanced health features, including temperature monitoring, ECG, and blood oxygen monitoring.

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While you can't measure blood pressure directly from your Apple Watch Series 8, you can use a smart medical-grade blood pressure monitor such as QardioArm or Withings BPM Connect to sync blood pressure data with the Apple Health app. QardioArm also has a companion app for the Apple Watch, which lets you see your measurement history right from your wrist.

We have been hearing reports of Apple working on adding blood pressure monitoring to the Apple Watch lineup for a while now. Sadly, this advanced health feature won't be available for quite some time. According to a report from Bloomberg, the blood pressure monitoring feature isn't expected to be ready before 2024 at the very least and may slip until 2025. Apparently, Apple isn't happy with the accuracy of the current sensor and is developing an updated sensor and software.

While the ability to measure your blood pressure on your smartwatch may sound futuristic, some smartwatches already offer this capability. Samsung's Galaxy Watch 5 and Galaxy Watch 4 come equipped with blood pressure monitoring though there are quite a few caveats. For one, the feature is only available in select markets and requires a Samsung phone. But perhaps the biggest obstacle is that you must regularly calibrate the watch using a traditional blood pressure cuff. These challenges may explain why Apple has not yet added the feature to its watch. Hopefully, the wait will be worth it, and Apple's implementation will be more reliable and accurate than what Samsung offers.

Apple Watch Series 8

Apple Watch Series 8

The Apple Watch Series 8 offers advanced health tracking features such as ECG and body temperature measurement but lacks blood pressure monitoring.