This was Apple’s big health-tracking upgrade: By monitoring your breathing disturbances with its accelerometer, the Series 10 can now detect and alert you to a potential sleep apnea issue, a condition that repeatedly halts breathing during sleep and is associated with long-term health risks, like hypertension and type 2 diabetes, the company says. (The Series 9 and Ultra 2 will receive this feature, too, with the watchOS 11 update.)
The watch uses machine learning to evaluate data across a 30-day period to detect the condition, so I wasn’t able to fully evaluate the feature in my brief experience with the model. But given that more than one billion people worldwide are estimated to have this condition, according to Apple, the feature could be really useful in motivating someone who’s unaware or unsure about seeking treatment.
The feature received clearance from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration, but, of course, a sleep apnea notification from the watch doesn’t replace the need for further evaluation, diagnosis, and treatment by a doctor. If you’re notified, Apple sends you educational materials, as well as a three-month PDF readout of your breathing disturbance data to bring to your doctor.
