Am I Addicted to My Wearable Device?

There's a nervous excitement. Visible is the chilled vapour coming from my competitors as they execute the "about to run" wiggle on the beginning point.

A rapid movement of the hips.

I'm participating in my local Saturday morning race and I'm focused. The countdown begins...

Oh, hang on. I have to start my watch. As does the guy alongside me.

The person waiting sighs. I won't start until… yes! GPS ready, and I'm running.

In the mele, it's hard to find a wrist without a fitness tracker on it. And this isn't only us participants who rely on them.

This is a booming, multi-billion pound market. Names like Apple Watch dominate, each with an wide range of diverse models to suit a variety of budgets. Based on how feature-packed the device you select, prices can range from a hundred pounds to thousands of pounds.

"It drives me insane, I can't relax."

"It reassures me… It acts as a supporter encouraging me."

"Stop telling me I've experienced a poor sleep."

A handful of the reactions people have shared from like-minded device users when I ask what they their opinion is on theirs.

The Data Dilemma

My current opinion on mine? Right now, irritating. It's indicating I'm not hitting my target, causing me to question whether the overhead branches I'm running below are disrupting my GPS connection.

A vast number of us strap these compact gadgets onto our arms and keep them on 24/7, apparently comfortable with the fact they're continuously recording us.

A distant memory are the days when we used them only to give us an rough count of our step count. Now, they can track our nightly rest, stress levels, glucose levels, our VO2 max.

It's a challenge to find a health indicator they fail to monitor.

But do they do what they advertise? And are the data points we scrutinise a true reflection of reality? Do they enhance our daily wellness, or do the avalanche of metrics and constant notifications just add to our everyday anxiety?

A Love-Hate Relationship

"I become a bit preoccupied with mine," an individual reveals.

While she appreciates how her device tracks her runs, she finds some of its other capabilities "excessive" at times - a feeling initially realised during a significant period.

Until she found out she could change its configuration, her smartwatch repeatedly informed her she was failing to be productive enough. Now, the watch keeps telling her she's had a restless night.

"I've got a young baby, there's no point to be informed I'm tired," she says. "I know that all too clearly."

Why doesn't she just stop wearing it?

"I suppose I could, theoretically, but I've got this complicated dynamic with it," she continues. "I value it for its exercise data, I sometimes question whether the myriad other functions it can now do is maybe overkill for me."

How Do They Work?

Each model of smartwatch has its own novel way of monitoring your vitals and analysing your data, but the vast bulk use optical sensors on the reverse of the watch.

They commonly emit minute LED lights onto your skin which can observe capillary action, identifying your BPM. More advanced devices measure changes in the electrical current that passes over the skin to assess your nervous system activity.

The Professional Viewpoint

A professor says that for most people for smartwatches, it's a "delicate equilibrium" - while the rapidly advancing tech could actually aid early diagnosis, "identifying issues before we feel unwell", it could also turn us watch wearers into the "concerned but fine".

He points out that the most advanced wearables can carry out tests like heart rhythm analysis, which constantly monitor how stable the heart is. They can alert if someone is experiencing atrial fibrillation (AF), where there is abnormal impulses in the heart causing an irregular heartbeat.

This does not necessarily indicate someone is about to have a heart attack, but it can give an advance notice they might be more vulnerable of a blood clot in the long term.

But how to interpret these figures is complex. The expert concerns that as additional features are incorporated, people may not be able to fully comprehend their data.

"I remain sceptical that being able to monitor so many metrics is such a positive development," he says.

A health researcher studying patient behaviour echoes this sentiment. Her work into the impact of wearable tech on a cohort of cardiovascular patients suggested a significant portion of those who were given devices to monitor their condition experienced greater stress and were "far more likely to use healthcare resources".

She observed a vicious circle with her patients - they spotted a concerning reading on their watch. They became worried. Their pulse went up. They got increasingly anxious. They checked again, and their reading increased again.

"When people are presented with data about ourselves that we lack context for then, understandably, we are going to become concerned," the psychologist says. "We monitor, we re-check - it becomes a vicious cycle."