Research suggests that increased reliance on smartwatches for habitual health monitoring may be increasing users’ anxiety.
Currently there are more than 562.86 million smartwatch users globally, and the smartwatch market is valued at approximately USD $35.29 billion. These numbers are projected to increase in the coming years, with market estimates at US$62.46 billion by 2028 and the global number of users projected to reach 740 million by 2029.
While these figures point to growing global success, the underlying question remains — what is driving this rise?
Modern smartwatches use built-in sensors like GPS and heart rate monitors to collect data about user activity. Each brand uses its own unique software to turn that information into personalized health metrics that can be understood by users.
With this data, users can monitor their physical activity, blood and oxygen levels, sleep and even heart health. Doctors admit to the benefits of using this wearable technology, especially for patients experiencing occasional heart symptoms.
In the era of “gymfluencers” and increased health consciousness, wearable technologies that make health data available at our fingertips or at the flick of the wrist are a key to elevating our quality of life. According to Apple CEO Tim Cook, some features on smartwatches, such as fall detection, can even save lives.
One 2024 study hints at the affective capabilities on users’ morale, finding that the devices are capable of “fulfill[ing] a motivational void.” Research also shows that wearable fitness trackers not only make users more likely to start working out, but also make them seven times more likely to continue with their fitness regimen six months down the line. Smartwatches can thus boost users’ morale, increasing physical health.
Despite all the benefits smartwatches may bring to our physical health, the negative impacts on mental health are underexplored.
While knowing one’s body and the changes occurring to it is important, the provision of real time data —notifications about decreased health, productivity or sleep — may create anxiety in users.
In a study published by the Journal of the American Heart Association, 172 individuals with atrial fibrillation (an irregular and rapid heart rhythm) were monitored over a nine-month period. Eighty-three of these individuals tracked their condition using smartwatches.
The study found that the cohort of smartwatch trackers expressed increased anxiety about their symptoms compared to the cohort that did not. In addition, one in five users expressed anxiety because of their usage.
The information overload that wearables provide may also result in alert fatigue — desensitization caused by the mental exhaustion stemming from an overwhelming amount of notifications. In the healthcare sector, alert fatigue is already a growing concern. Increased accessibility to data and notifications encouraging more frequent consultations with physicians can cause frustration in users, resulting in an increase in ignored warnings.
For users free of diagnosed health conditions, the notifications smartwatches provide can also, at times, be a nuisance. Sleep and productivity insights, for example, often inform pregnant women and new mothers of what they already know — notifying them that they are not getting enough sleep or that they are not productive enough.
Upon cancelling their subscription to WHOOP, a fitness tracking wearable, one Reddit user shared their experience on how their fitness tracker turned them into “an anxiety trigger” in just a few months. They explained that they tracked every aspect of their health including sleep, recovery and performance. However, within a few months, they became oddly obsessed with their heart rate.
The user would track their heart rate during and after workouts, staring at their watch for extended periods. This constant tracking created a never-before-held anxiety in the user, prompting them to “let go of the band and move on.” The user issued a warning to readers. “These tools can be helpful — but only if you know how to use them without letting them use you.” The Reddit user’s experience is not isolated, many under the thread echo the same warning.
For those already struggling with health anxiety, smartwatches are not tools to improve physical health, but rather tools that feed into existing fears and delusions. In any case, the physical benefits of tracking one’s fitness with a smartwatch may not outweigh the mental consequences for some.
