Seems to me that blood oxygen will largely be a cool party trick. A) Unless you are quite sick, your O2 is normal. If you are quite sick and aren't getting enough O2 your body detects it and you feel short of breath and start breathing faster/harder. The O2 sensor gives you a number; whether you head to the doctor or not will depend on how you feel.
Now, if they could get an accurate blood glucose (i.e. blood sugar) monitor, I think that will be a game changer. (But that one is likely a ways off.)
An SpO2 sensor could, I suspect, be useful for endurance athletes. It is a well accepted fact that high end endurance athletes (runners, cyclists, etc.) are rated on their VO2Max (the body's ability to take in and use Oxygen). So, providing real time blood levels of oxygen during an event could provide additional useful data to those athletes over and above heart rate.
For myself, when I race, I look at heart rate most of all in order to pace myself by allowing it to climb from 80% of max up to 95-100% in a controlled manner. I suspect that blood oxygen levels might be very useful to know in order to better pace myself during an event -- telling me how well my heart and lungs are supplying oxygen to my muscles.
In healthy people, arterial blood oxygen levels don't increase or decrease during physical activity. You might see a slight, momentary drop during a so-called supramaximal effort, but largely no change. Increased O2 delivery to active muscles is accomplished by increasing respiratory rate and increasing cardiac output (stroke volume x heart rate). Unless you have a disease or disorder, a single hemoglobin protein molecule picks up and drops off four oxygen molecules at the same rate always, no matter what state of activity you're in.
Seems to me that blood oxygen will largely be a cool party trick. A) Unless you are quite sick, your O2 is normal. If you are quite sick and aren't getting enough O2 your body detects it and you feel short of breath and start breathing faster/harder. The O2 sensor gives you a number; whether you head to the doctor or not will depend on how you feel.
Now, if they could get an accurate blood glucose (i.e. blood sugar) monitor, I think that will be a game changer. (But that one is likely a ways off.)
An SpO2 sensor could, I suspect, be useful for endurance athletes. It is a well accepted fact that high end endurance athletes (runners, cyclists, etc.) are rated on their VO2Max (the body's ability to take in and use Oxygen). So, providing real time blood levels of oxygen during an event could provide additional useful data to those athletes over and above heart rate.
For myself, when I race, I look at heart rate most of all in order to pace myself by allowing it to climb from 80% of max up to 95-100% in a controlled manner. I suspect that blood oxygen levels might be very useful to know in order to better pace myself during an event -- telling me how well my heart and lungs are supplying oxygen to my muscles.
In healthy people, arterial blood oxygen levels don't increase or decrease during physical activity. You might see a slight, momentary drop during a so-called supramaximal effort, but largely no change. Increased O2 delivery to active muscles is accomplished by increasing respiratory rate and increasing cardiac output (stroke volume x heart rate). Unless you have a disease or disorder, a single hemoglobin protein molecule picks up and drops off four oxygen molecules at the same rate always, no matter what state of activity you're in.
That might depend on the physical activity. If one is running at or near a 100% of their Max heart rate (which is max'd out because the body is trying to oxygenate itself -- or more correctly, de-CO2 itself) then it would be logical to believe that oxygen saturation might be affected. But, honestly, I have not seen any studies on that one way or the other. It's just logical.
I ran my last race at an average of 94% of my actual max heart rate (and most of the race was above that). I find it hard to believe that my oxygen saturation was not both a factor in my speed as well as affected by my speed (which admittedly is not all that speedy!)
Seems to me that blood oxygen will largely be a cool party trick. A) Unless you are quite sick, your O2 is normal. If you are quite sick and aren't getting enough O2 your body detects it and you feel short of breath and start breathing faster/harder. The O2 sensor gives you a number; whether you head to the doctor or not will depend on how you feel.
Now, if they could get an accurate blood glucose (i.e. blood sugar) monitor, I think that will be a game changer. (But that one is likely a ways off.)
An SpO2 sensor could, I suspect, be useful for endurance athletes. It is a well accepted fact that high end endurance athletes (runners, cyclists, etc.) are rated on their VO2Max (the body's ability to take in and use Oxygen). So, providing real time blood levels of oxygen during an event could provide additional useful data to those athletes over and above heart rate.
For myself, when I race, I look at heart rate most of all in order to pace myself by allowing it to climb from 80% of max up to 95-100% in a controlled manner. I suspect that blood oxygen levels might be very useful to know in order to better pace myself during an event -- telling me how well my heart and lungs are supplying oxygen to my muscles.
In healthy people, arterial blood oxygen levels don't increase or decrease during physical activity. You might see a slight, momentary drop during a so-called supramaximal effort, but largely no change. Increased O2 delivery to active muscles is accomplished by increasing respiratory rate and increasing cardiac output (stroke volume x heart rate). Unless you have a disease or disorder, a single hemoglobin protein molecule picks up and drops off four oxygen molecules at the same rate always, no matter what state of activity you're in.
This study indicate that oxygen saturation does indeed decrease as you reach maximum heart rate. This study was done with athletes and nothing indicates that it was a momentary drop.
Seems to me that blood oxygen will largely be a cool party trick. A) Unless you are quite sick, your O2 is normal. If you are quite sick and aren't getting enough O2 your body detects it and you feel short of breath and start breathing faster/harder. The O2 sensor gives you a number; whether you head to the doctor or not will depend on how you feel.
Now, if they could get an accurate blood glucose (i.e. blood sugar) monitor, I think that will be a game changer. (But that one is likely a ways off.)
An SpO2 sensor could, I suspect, be useful for endurance athletes. It is a well accepted fact that high end endurance athletes (runners, cyclists, etc.) are rated on their VO2Max (the body's ability to take in and use Oxygen). So, providing real time blood levels of oxygen during an event could provide additional useful data to those athletes over and above heart rate.
For myself, when I race, I look at heart rate most of all in order to pace myself by allowing it to climb from 80% of max up to 95-100% in a controlled manner. I suspect that blood oxygen levels might be very useful to know in order to better pace myself during an event -- telling me how well my heart and lungs are supplying oxygen to my muscles.
In healthy people, arterial blood oxygen levels don't increase or decrease during physical activity. You might see a slight, momentary drop during a so-called supramaximal effort, but largely no change. Increased O2 delivery to active muscles is accomplished by increasing respiratory rate and increasing cardiac output (stroke volume x heart rate). Unless you have a disease or disorder, a single hemoglobin protein molecule picks up and drops off four oxygen molecules at the same rate always, no matter what state of activity you're in.
This study indicate that oxygen saturation does indeed decrease as you reach maximum heart rate. This study was done with athletes and nothing indicates that it was a momentary drop.
Interesting! Thank you! (I think!) That now poses a problem for me if Apple incorporates SpO2 monitoring in their next Apple Watch -- should I get a new iPhone with 5G & OLED for my grandson (and I inherit his Xr) or a Series 6 Apple Watch?
Damn those innovators at Apple -- always making for tough decisions!
We are looking for smart watch not hospital monitoring or advance biometrics device for Pete's sake. Can Aple come up with something useful for regular user that has no needs for so called "health monitoring"?
We are looking for smart watch not hospital monitoring or advance biometrics device for Pete's sake. Can Aple come up with something useful for regular user that has no needs for so called "health monitoring"?
If you don't want a smart watch should monitor your health then a large and growing reason for having a smart device attached to your person will continue to be a thorn in your side. The only way out is for you to embrace why people want basic health monitoring and recognizing that there are countless lives that have already been saved by Apple Watch.
We are looking for smart watch not hospital monitoring or advance biometrics device for Pete's sake. Can Aple come up with something useful for regular user that has no needs for so called "health monitoring"?
If you don't want it then turn it off. But, it's not clear what the benefit would be.
Seems to me that blood oxygen will largely be a cool party trick. A) Unless you are quite sick, your O2 is normal. If you are quite sick and aren't getting enough O2 your body detects it and you feel short of breath and start breathing faster/harder. The O2 sensor gives you a number; whether you head to the doctor or not will depend on how you feel...
I would guess it would be related to sleep tracking, since sleep apnea deprives a person of oxygen.
"There is a way we could identify more patients who have Covid pneumonia sooner and treat them more effectively — and it would not require waiting for a coronavirus test at a hospital or doctor’s office. It requires detecting silent hypoxia early through a common medical device that can be purchased without a prescription at most pharmacies: a pulse oximeter." quoted from Dr. Levitan is an emergency doctor. A pulse oximeter is a blood oxygen sensor (usually finger reading).
Also O2 is super important in achieving anaerobic exercises.
So I for one will be upgrading my 4th gen Watch if it has the O2 sensor.
Comments
Talk to your carrier
If you don't want it then turn it off. But, it's not clear what the benefit would be.
"There is a way we could identify more patients who have Covid pneumonia sooner and treat them more effectively — and it would not require waiting for a coronavirus test at a hospital or doctor’s office. It requires detecting silent hypoxia early through a common medical device that can be purchased without a prescription at most pharmacies: a pulse oximeter." quoted from Dr. Levitan is an emergency doctor. A pulse oximeter is a blood oxygen sensor (usually finger reading).
Also O2 is super important in achieving anaerobic exercises.
So I for one will be upgrading my 4th gen Watch if it has the O2 sensor.