Starting with watchOS 11, you can use the Vitals application for Apple Watch. In the app, you will find a collection of measurements, such as heart rate, respiration rate, saturation, sleep and wrist temperature. Together, these measurements can help you understand the current status of your body.
Short-term changes can be a sign that something might be wrong. Vital signs notice these changes and can alert the user to see a doctor. This allows the feature to give you insight into your overall health and alert you to changes.
Apple Watch Vitals
You’ve probably heard the term vital signs before, and they’re usually checked during a doctor’s visit. They’re usually a series of very specific measurements, such as your heart rate and body temperature. Doctors use these data to get an important picture of your overall health.
The Apple Watch has been monitoring various vital functions for some time now, such as your breathing rate, heart rate, wrist temperature, etc. You can find this data in the Health app for iPhone and iPad, but from watchOS 11 also in the Vitals app for Apple Watch (Vitals). This allows you to easily monitor your health.
Purpose of Vital Signs
The purpose of the application is to give you insight into your overall health, but especially to warn you of changes. Especially in the case of so-called ‘Outliers’, watchOS and iOS will actively warn you. Thanks to the function, you can monitor your health well and consult a doctor in case of problems.
Vitals availability and conditions
Vitals is available on all Apple Watch models that can run this software or later as of watchOS 11. It is important to realize that not all data is available on all devices. For example, the respiratory rate will only be visible on Apple Watch models with a saturation sensor and the wrist temperature is only measured if you have a Watch model with a temperature sensor.
In addition, the Vitals app only works if you Apple Watch wears at night. This is the best way to measure vital signs, because it provides the most consistent and comparable data. Therefore, use the sleep function of the Apple Watch to collect data.
Activate vital functions
Before you can use the Vital Signs app, you must activate the feature.
- Open the Apple Watch app on your iPhone
- Go to ‘My Watch’
- Tap on ‘Vital Signs’
- Select ‘Configure ‘Vital Signs’ in Health’
- Follow the on-screen steps to enable the feature and notifications
Using Apple Watch Vitals
Once you have activated the option, you can use the application on your Apple Watch. Open Vitals and view the collected data. This way you can check your heart rate, breathing rate, pulse temperature, saturation and sleep duration from last night at a glance. You also get an overall score for your vitals.
Switch between day and week view
Using the calendar icon, you can switch between day and week view in the app. The latter is especially useful for checking the progress of the past seven days.
Widget in smart stack
Of course, you can also add widgets to your smart stack from your watch face. From the widget, you can immediately check your vitals from last night. For now, there are no complications available for this app.
Vital Functions in Health
If you want to see more details, it is recommended to view your vitals in the Health app for iPhone and Apple Watch. To do this, go to the ‘Data’ tab and open Vitals. Then open the ‘Vitals’ section again to get an overview.
Swipe left and right to switch between the different days or use the tabs to open a week, month or other view. If there are any special features, such as outliers, these are immediately displayed in the overview.
From Health you can also request more information about this function.
Receive notifications for deviations
The purpose of this feature is, of course, to monitor your vital signs and alert you to any deviations. The app establishes a typical range for each of your health metrics that it collects while you sleep. You’ll be notified if two or more values ​​fall outside of the typical range.
What to do in case of changes
Since you are looking at short-term changes with these measurements, it can be helpful to compare your measurement from last night to recent averages. When a measurement falls outside of the range, it is called an outlier. Typically, most measurements will fall within the range and you will not have any outliers. That is a sign that everything is probably in balance.
Factors Affecting Measurements
Many things can cause your readings to increase or decrease. A common cause is getting sick. When you have a cold, your heart often beats faster while you sleep, helping your body fight off the infection. Your heart rate is higher when you sleep, and you can see this in the Vitals app.
But there are other factors that can affect your heart rate, such as alcohol consumption, recovery from exercise, or hormonal changes related to your menstrual cycle. For each measurement, a unique set of factors can cause an increase or decrease. Sometimes, there are multiple factors that cause a change.
Consult a doctor
Knowing when one or more measurements are out of range can help you reflect on recent changes in your lifestyle or environment, and in some cases take action.
An athlete may take a rest day if the heart rate is higher after a big training session. Someone may prioritize rest after being in a high altitude environment if the saturation is low and the respiratory rate is high.
It’s possible that you’re having outliers but no symptoms. If multiple readings are out of range, you can go to the Vitals app to get a better idea of ​​all the different factors that could be contributing to these changes.
The Vital Signs app is not designed to detect any disease or medical condition. If you are concerned about a change in your health, you should contact a doctor.