Can a health tracker be dangerous for you?

Make no mistake, I’m not about to counsel that health trackers are a foul factor. We love them right here at Android Authority, and the overwhelming majority of householders both see constructive advantages from proudly owning one or are at the least impartial about them. It’s very uncommon {that a} health tracker or smartwatch has a foul or adverse impact in your well being or every other side of your life aside from maybe your financial institution stability once you fork out for it.

That mentioned, health trackers can pose some comparatively small however actual dangers. As unlikely as they could be to influence you, it’s necessary to pay attention to them. Let’s speak about among the predominant ones.

Health trackers are nice for maintaining tabs in your exercise and serving to you keep on observe to hit your targets, however they may gasoline unhealthy habits round meals and weight for sure folks. For example, obsessively monitoring each calorie burned or consumed can flip into one thing extra problematic, particularly in the event you’re already vulnerable to disordered consuming. It will possibly really feel much less like a useful instrument and extra like a relentless reminder that you just’re “not doing sufficient,” resulting in restrictive behaviors and even making present consuming problems worse.

Analysis helps the concept that some customers of health trackers, notably these centered on weight and energy, usually tend to develop dangerous habits like overexercising or extreme calorie restriction. It’s not the tracker’s fault precisely, however for folks with sure vulnerabilities, it could add gasoline to the hearth. Whereas the overwhelming majority of customers gained’t face these points, it’s one thing to be aware of if you end up getting somewhat too fixated on the numbers.

On a associated word, one other refined danger with health trackers is that they’ll typically trigger you to tune out what your physique’s truly telling you. Ever felt such as you needed to hit your 10,000 steps it doesn’t matter what, even once you’re exhausted or feeling below the climate? It’s fairly frequent. Many individuals get caught up in sustaining streaks, assembly day by day targets, or competing with pals on apps like Strava, which is all enjoyable till it begins overshadowing your physique’s want for relaxation.

Research counsel that when folks rely an excessive amount of on tracker knowledge, they could push by means of accidents or fatigue to keep away from breaking a streak. It’s simple to fall into the lure of “only one extra exercise,” however your physique is a way more efficient metric than the information from the machine in your wrist, and it is aware of what’s greatest for you. Neglect competing or attempting to fulfill that arbitrary purpose your tracker units, and take a day or two off once you really feel such as you want it.

With all the flowery instruments packed into trendy health trackers — coronary heart fee screens, blood oxygen sensors, ECGs, and even stress trackers — it’s simple to really feel such as you’re in excellent well being if the numbers look good. And let’s be sincere, many people love a motive to keep away from the physician. However we shouldn’t rationalize on this approach. Whereas these units can present useful insights, they’re not a substitute for normal medical check-ups.

Health trackers aren’t foolproof. As spectacular as their sensors are, they’ll typically be inaccurate and offer you a false sense of safety. For example, a coronary heart fee monitor may miss refined arrhythmias or different coronary heart points that solely a correct medical machine would catch. Likewise, your blood oxygen stage being on level doesn’t imply you’re resistant to different underlying well being issues.

In brief, relying solely in your health tracker may imply lacking indicators that one thing dangerous is lingering under the floor, and that’s a raffle you don’t wish to take. If it helps you notice sure issues about your well being, then that’s useful, however don’t get lulled right into a false sense of safety by your wrist companion.

Your health tracker is aware of lots about you. Out of your day by day step depend to your coronary heart fee fluctuations, sleep patterns, and even your location, these units acquire a ton of delicate data. That knowledge may be helpful for maintaining tabs in your well being, however it’s simple to neglect the safety dangers that include storing all this private data.

Let’s imagine the identical about your different units, however well being knowledge is especially delicate, and never each tracker or app presents top-tier safety. If a hacker will get entry to your account, they might doubtlessly collect not solely your well being stats but additionally issues like your house deal with and routine. And it’s not simply hackers — typically, corporations themselves don’t do the perfect job at maintaining your knowledge personal or providing you with the instruments to manage the way it’s used. That’s an enormous deal for a few of us, particularly in the event you desire to maintain your private life personal.

There isn’t an ideal answer to this if you wish to observe your whole metrics, however it’s a good suggestion to dig into your tracker’s privateness settings, use sturdy passwords, and be sure to know precisely how your knowledge is being dealt with. You wouldn’t hand over your medical information to only anybody, so deal with your health tracker knowledge with the identical warning.

We’re ending on a lighter word, however lots of people with health trackers are focused on bettering how they give the impression of being. That’s honest sufficient, so you may also wish to contemplate that the tracker itself can depart you with a less-than-ideal trend assertion: the dreaded tan line. Spend sufficient time outdoors with that tracker in your wrist, and also you may fall sufferer to it. Whereas that’s extra of a beauty difficulty, there’s a extra uncomfortable aspect impact of extended use that some customers expertise: pores and skin irritation.

When you’re not cautious, sweat, moisture, and filth can get trapped below the band, particularly throughout exercises. This may result in rashes or irritation if left unchecked. The excellent news is that more often than not, this may be averted with easy upkeep — simply take a couple of minutes to wash your tracker and your wrist usually, and possibly give your pores and skin a break by loosening the band or taking it off sometimes.

Some folks could be delicate to sure supplies within the band itself, which may trigger irritation. When you discover something alongside these strains, it’s price checking what your band is made from. A bit little bit of repairs goes a great distance in maintaining your pores and skin completely satisfied.