Do you have an Apple Watch Series 8 or newer? Then you can very simply tell that you are getting sick thanks to the special Vitality app.
Being sick is never fun, and often there’s not much you can do about it. A virus spreads easily between people, leaving you with little control. Still, your Apple Watch can help you prepare in advance.
Since the launch of watchOS 11, you have access to a new app if you have an Apple Watch Series 8 or newer. This app can instantly recognize diseases and other abnormal patterns in your health.
The Apple Watch predicts when you’ll get sick
The Apple Watch now features the Vitality app. Many users initially did not know exactly what this app did and compared it to the heart rate app. However, Vitality works slightly differently, as the app collects data from your sleep and can notice changes in your health.
You can recognize the Vitality app on your Apple Watch by the icon with the four circles. Pressing this will take you to a menu where various vital signs are measured as you sleep. These include your heart rate, pulse temperature, blood oxygen levels, respiratory rate and sleep duration.
The Vitality app. (Image: Apple)
This data is compared to your general data, which allows the Apple Watch to determine if there is anything abnormal. This could indicate health problems, for example. If your pulse temperature is several times higher than normal, you will receive a notification. This way you know in advance if something is wrong.
Here’s how the Vitality app works in watchOS 11
Of course you don’t stick a thermometer in your ear or mouth every day as a preventive measure, but with the Vitality app you often know in advance if you are in danger of getting sick. This allows you to take measures, such as scheduling more rest or postponing appointments you had scheduled for the next few days while you still feel reasonable.
For the Vitality app to work properly, you need to wear the Apple Watch while you sleep for at least seven nights. That way, the watch can determine what your normal averages are. Of course, you must also have your smartwatch on at the times you want to capture the data.
So to use Vitality, you need to be sleeping with the Apple Watch on your wrist for at least seven days and have watchOS 11 installed. This is possible with an Apple Watch Series 8 or newer. Want to know more about new watchOS features? Then read this article below.