Why It Is Important To Track Your Blood Pressure

As technology improves, we all expect a lot more from our smartwatches. Furthermore, when it comes to our health, we like to know that our data is held and analyzed in one place. This allows us to understand our health better and can prompt us to make changes. When it comes to blood pressure and our heart, there are several options available to us.

What Is Blood Pressure and What Does It Tell Us?

We have all heard of blood pressure. But do you understand what blood pressure is, why it is important to track your blood pressure and what it tells you?

Blood pressure is the measurement of the amount of force that it takes your heart to pump blood around your body. You can see from that explanation that a higher blood pressure means there is more pressure being put on your heart as it needs more force to pump your blood.

Blood pressure has two measurements; systolic pressure that measures the pressure when your heart pumps the blood out. And diastolic pressure that measures the pressure in between heartbeats. When these measures are read together, your blood pressure can indicate how healthy your heart is. Blood pressure can be too high, too low, or ideal. Consequently, it is important to track your blood pressure.

Which Smartwatches Monitor Blood Pressure?

If you are looking for a smartwatch to monitor your blood pressure, there are a few to choose from. Find out more below:

Apple

Since the first Apple Watch, it is clear that the brand has had a focus on health. They have introduced many USPs that have focused on the wearer’s health. When it comes to the heart, Apple first introduced a heart monitor that would measure and track a person’s heart rate. Following on from the success of this, Apple introduced an ECG function. It is clear this doesn’t replace medical care or visiting a doctor. However, it does give the wearer an indication of whether there are issues with their heart.

To go a step further, blood pressure monitoring is available on Apple Watch. However, not as part of their suite of health apps. It is possible to download apps such as Qardio through the App Store. These can link with a smart blood pressure monitor, or fitness apps such as MyFitnessPal that allow you to manually record your blood pressure. 

Garmin

Garmin is another brand associated with fitness trackers. So it shouldn’t come as a surprise that they also have heart rate options. Previously, Garmin smartwatch users had to wear a paired heart rate chest strap to get an accurate reading. However, as the tech developed, the heart rate monitor was incorporated into the watch itself.

There are many ways that Garmin uses heart rate data to help you understand your health and fitness and how to make your workouts more effective. Blood pressure measuring is not a feature on the Garmin smartwatches yet. However, it is possible to download apps to keep track of your blood pressure digitally so that you can monitor any changes along with your heart rate data.

Fitbit

Fitbit is another brand of smartwatch with a focus on fitness. The range of Fitbit watches available cater to most fitness requirements. So it seems quite natural that heart monitoring comes as standard on most of the newer offerings. Heart rate tracking is accompanied by an ECG monitor like the Apple Watch if you opt for the Fitbit Sense.

As with the others, blood pressure monitoring is not included in the watch itself, but third-party apps are available, which allow you to record and monitor your blood pressure.

Omron HeartGuide

If you want more than just monitoring from your smartwatch, the only option is the Omron HeartGuide. This watch can accurately record your blood pressure throughout the day with the unique inflatable wrist strap that allows the watch to take accurate readings.

What you won’t find with this watch is many of the features that you might expect from a smartwatch. Tracking your blood pressure, activities, and sleep comes as standard, and you can receive notifications that you have a new text, call, or email. However, if you want to do more, you will have to pick up your phone.

Which Device Is the Best Choice?

This depends on what you want from your smartwatch. If you want accurate measuring of your blood pressure, then the Omron is the device for you. However, if you want a watch with more functionality, are happy to monitor your blood pressure through an app that you input manually, or you have a smart blood pressure monitor, then you may be better suited to one of the big brands.

Apple has the best range of features with the inbuilt heart rate monitoring and ECG function, as well as the ability to use third-party apps to monitor blood pressure.

Garmin offers a fantastic analysis of heart rate data and allows you to download apps that can monitor your blood pressure for you. However, ECG functionality has not yet been brought to Garmin watches.

Fitbit watches also offer great heart rate monitoring, and the Fitbit Sense has ECG functionality. However, Fitbit is limited in the wider functionality expected of a smartwatch and is limited in the apps available to download and use to monitor your blood pressure.

Should I Buy a Smartwatch That Monitors Blood Pressure?

Understanding your blood pressure is one of the keys to a healthy heart and will give you instant feedback on how well your heart is coping when you are in different situations.

Opting for a smartwatch that provides you with blood pressure monitoring and recording capabilities makes it easy to stay on top of your health and keep an eye on potential hypertension. In short, any accurate information that your smartwatch can store regarding your blood pressure should be welcomed and used to effectively to monitor your health.

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Last Updated on December 13, 2020