?:How accurate is Apple Watch heart rate reading?

[Spacewiz]

Was at my Dr's office a few days ago, where they always check the vitals. The machine they used, and my watch were in perfect agreement.

 

[iamasmith]

I have a low average too around 40 normally but drops to 36 from time to time. The watch tracks this pretty accurately and gives me an occasional warning that I can't alter without turning it off

 

[fredash]

performed an exercise test during 50 minutes with an AW series 4 : The heart rate was spot on and perfectly similar to the ECG (within 1 beat !) during all the exercice !

 

[elithea]

To test whether it’s accurate, manually check your pulse at the same time by placing a finger in the corner of your neck or bottom of your wrist. You will feel the jumps. If you do then the watch is accurate and you should go to the ER. If your pulse feels normal then the watch is not reporting your HR correctly.

thanks! my pulse is fine, no jumps. i did some more googling and the comments on this page mirrored my experience, so i’m no longer worried. thanks again. http://osxdaily.com/2016/11/16/tips...XV1VDAooOFK-Vbuz1Z9CQI2TEJb-V7vOD0jJhOyQp6AKM

 

[maka344]

thanks! my pulse is fine, no jumps. i did some more googling and the comments on this page mirrored my experience, so i’m no longer worried. thanks again. http://osxdaily.com/2016/11/16/tips...XV1VDAooOFK-Vbuz1Z9CQI2TEJb-V7vOD0jJhOyQp6AKM

Maybe like me, you just need to tighten the band. Having the backup of a manual check is great so if you’re ever in doubt just use tour finger and check manually.

 

[envizion1374]

Hello,

Hope everyone is doing well!

Ive got a very low heart rate and have been to my cardiologist regularly to monitor it. On every piece of blood pressure equipment Ive been measured with my resting reading is usually between 35-40 beats per minute. My cardiologist says that I have a "runner's heart".

Interestingly enough when I check my Apple Watch the usual reading is around 70 beats per minute. So, I figured that my Apple Watch was just not accurate. Then, when our daughter got a brand new Apple Watch this year (mine is the original model), I put it on and sure enough the readings were between 68-75 bpm.

I have 2 blood pressure monitors at home and her readings on those are around 75bpm. On her Apple Watch the readings are the same, 75bpm.

I have a regular irregular heart beat (the 3rd beat in a sequence is quicker right after the 2nd beat and then the next beat takes a bit longer).

Im wondering if maybe the Apple Watch is picking up something that the blood pressure monitors are not (?) or if the Apple Watch is just not as reliable.

Anyway, thank you for your time in reading all this and if you have any thoughts please let me know what you think.

Best to you always,

Rick

Though somewhat unusual for people in their 30s, I have a sinus arrhythmia. That’s just my heart’s particular rhythm. I also have rare PVCs that happen on average between 4 and 10 times a day. None of that concerns my cardiologist in the least. But almost every day I will have random readings during the day where it reads my heart rate at between 48 and 56. At rest with minimal stress, my resting rate is in the mid to high 60s. At rest with moderate stress, it’ll climb into the high 70s to low 80s. And during my daily walks, it’ll jump between 90 and 105 depending on my level of exertion. When it takes your heart rate at random intervals, it is only taking a 5 second snapshot and multiplying by 20 to get your rate. In my case, if I’m breathing in (when it slows down slightly), it could easily spit out an inaccurate result. It’s not really built to account for much outside of a standard sinus rhythm. I’d assume when your watch spits out a higher rate it’s taking the HR at an interval that picks up 1 or 2 of those quicker third beats you said you have, causing the issue. It is indeed the most accurate, but all of them have that same limitation where they only take short intervals. A BP cuff is going to be more accurate because it’s taking a 30-second snapshot.