Rest Easy, Hear Clearly: Apple Releases Two Big New Health Features in India
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Folks tracking their health with Apple gear in India are getting a massive upgrade to their morning routine. Apple is officially rolling out overnight sleep apnea alerts to the Apple Watch, alongside on-demand Hearing Tests for the AirPods Pro.
Sleep Apnea Alerts for the Apple Watch
Apple heavily promoted sleep apnea alerts as a headline feature in the Apple Watch Series 10 two years ago. However, it turned out the new health feature would also be available on Apple Watch Series 9 and Apple Watch Ultra 2 wearables as part of watchOS 11, since they all basically share the same chip.
Apple explains that all of its 2024 and later Apple models — including the more affordable Apple Watch SE 3 — use a unique method of detecting sleep apnea that relies on the wearable device’s accelerometer and the Neural Engine in its latest silicon to analyze breathing and detect patterns typical of sleep apnea.
But What Is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a condition that can cause breathing to repeatedly stop and start as a person sleeps. This affliction can cause poor rest — something I can personally attest to. Having had sleep apnea since the late 90s, I know from experience how sleep apnea can turn you into a zombie.
By preventing the body from getting enough oxygen, sleep apnea can also lead to additional health problems. Apple estimates that the condition impacts more than one billion people worldwide, and also goes undiagnosed in most cases. If left untreated, sleep apnea can lead to an increased risk of hypertension, type 2 diabetes, cardiac issues, and other potentially serious health conditions.
The Apple Watch uses its accelerometer to track subtle wrist movements associated with irregular breathing patterns. When the watch is worn over several nights, it can detect if these disturbances are occurring over time and flag a potential case of sleep apnea. Nightly breathing disturbances are logged in the iPhone’s Health app, where they can then be shared with the user’s physician.
The sleep apnea detection feature is supported on the Apple Watch Series 9, Series 10, Series 11, Apple Watch Ultra 2, and Apple Watch Ultra 3, and Apple Watch SE 3, and is available in more than 150 countries worldwide.
Hearing Test for AirPods Pro
Hearing loss is a condition that often worsens gradually, meaning many people are unaware that they may have the condition. This is why Apple developed an easy-to-use, clinical-grade hearing test based on the standard clinical approach called pure-tone audiometry. Users can perform the tests by themselves using a supported pair of AirPods Pro earbuds and a compatible iPhone or iPad.
Hearing tests are available to any users with a pair of AirPods Pro 2 or AirPods Pro 3 that are connected to an iPhone or iPad running iOS/iPadOS 18.1 or later. The hearing tests are designed to measure a user’s hearing via tests similar to those they might experience at a doctor’s office or during a visit to an audiologist.
The tests play tones at varying frequencies and sound levels in each ear, with users tapping their iPhone’s display whenever they hear a sound. Four frequencies are tested, including 500 Hz, 1 kHz, 2 kHz, and 4 kHz. Results of up to 25 dBHL indicate little to no hearing loss. 26 to 40 dBHL indicates mild hearing loss, 41 to 60 dBHL suggests moderate hearing loss. Results of 61 to 80 dBHL show severe hearing loss, and a result above 80 dBHL indicates profound hearing loss.
All results, including an audiogram, are stored in the Health app. The information can then be shared with a health provider, allowing the user to have more informed conversations about their hearing loss.
“At Apple, we believe technology should empower people to take control of their health, and that starts with giving users tools to detect conditions they may not even know they have,” said Sumbul Desai, M.D., Apple’s vice president of Health and Fitness. “From sleep apnoea notifications on Apple Watch to a hearing test with AirPods Pro, we’re excited to bring these meaningful capabilities to our users in India.”
Apple Health features are now available in over 160 countries and regions globally, says Apple’s Greg Joswiak. Joswiak’s post also indicates that Apple has made its Hearing Aid feature available users in Italy and has rolled out hypertension notifications to Taiwan.
