For the past year, Jonathan Levitt has kept tabs on his daily stress with the help of a smartwatch. Based on what he鈥檚 learned from tracking his data, Levitt now deliberately programs downtime into his day. 鈥淚 use it to understand when I should add more restful moments and to nail my rest days,鈥 he says. (Levitt, an amateur runner, also operates the lighthearted Twitter and Instagram accounts with athletes Amelia Boone and Caroline Burckle.) When he鈥檚 feeling run-down, instead of rushing straight to the gym from work, he鈥檒l lounge on his couch for 20 minutes first. As a result, he feels stronger and more resilient, even as he鈥檚 increased his training volume and intensity. He also claims he鈥檚 sleeping better.
Garmin is among a recent wave of companies who鈥檝e entered the stress-wearables market. The new devices move beyond activity tracking to monitor the body鈥檚 stress response鈥攗sing markers such as breathing rate, skin temperature, and heart-rate variability鈥攁nd alert users when tension rises above normal. A buzz or beep acts as a subtle nudge: How about a break or a deep breath? The aim is to rein in your fight-or-flight instinct. In theory this should short-颅circuit acute stress and stave off chronic stress, which is linked to a host of health conditions that include heart disease and diabetes.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an exciting time for this area of biofeedback鈥攖here鈥檚 so much potential for the technology,鈥 says John Torous, codirector of the at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston. 鈥淧eople will always be stressed, and they want solutions that are affordable and easy to access.鈥
Interest in tools for mental well-being is booming alongside rising stress rates. According to the , nearly 50 percent of people say they need help learning how to manage tension. Venture capitalists have invested more than $200 million in mental-health apps to date, according to Crunchbase. Serene-sounding startups like Feel, Spire, and WellBe have emerged, while established brands like Apple and Fitbit have introduced stress-tracking features into their wearables. Most gadgets cost between $100 and $250.
The science behind the new products is rooted in mindfulness-based approaches to stress reduction and respiratory regulation. Spire鈥檚 , for example, which clips onto a waistband or bra, classifies breathing patterns as focused, tense, calm, or neutral, depending on rate and variability. If your breathing is fast but erratic (鈥渢ense鈥), the Stone vibrates, signaling that it鈥檚 time to relax. Jiten Chhabra, a health-technology researcher at Georgia Tech, says there鈥檚 a connection between the area of the brain responsible for respiration and the vagus nerve, the primary player in the parasympathetic nervous system. And unlike heart rate, you can consciously control your breath, even when focused on work. 鈥淭hat means people can use feedback in a way that doesn鈥檛 force them to stop what they鈥檙e doing or go to a quiet room,鈥 says Neema Moraveji, cofounder and chief scientist at Spire.
A buzz or beep acts as a subtle nudge: How about a break or a deep breath? The aim is to rein in your fight-or-flight instinct and short-circuit acute stress.
Some preliminary research backs this up. A 2016 study in the journal found that breath regulation reduced levels of certain pro-inflammatory biomarkers. Other studies have shown that deep breathing decreases exercise-induced physiological stress. And initial findings from 2017 Spire and Stanford University research found that people wearing the Stone reported less perceived stress, fewer acute stress symptoms, and 27 percent fewer anxious days compared with a control group.
But in some ways, the hype has gotten ahead of science. For example, while there鈥檚 proof that heart-rate variability is a good indicator of the body鈥檚 recovery state, it鈥檚 too early to know whether rest or training should be prescribed based on that information. Health trackers haven鈥檛 been evaluated through rigorous randomized trials specifically focused on stress reduction, although some clinical trials and larger-scale studies are under way. The research that does exist is primarily industry or company funded, which may have skewed the findings.
Another issue: there鈥檚 no easy way to accurately determine when the body鈥檚 stress response is optimal for the task at hand, says Esther Sternberg, research director at the . For example, a tracker may flag any spike in heart rate or breathing, but that information is presented in a vacuum. An athlete getting psyched up for a race may display physiological stress, but in that case it鈥檚 essential for peak performance. Sternberg and her colleagues are working to identify the molecular patterns in sweat specific to various stress scenarios. 鈥淲e hope that with this research, we have more precise measures to know when it鈥檚 necessary to kick in the relaxation response,鈥 she says.
For now researchers caution against using stress-tracking devices to self-diagnose or self-treat mental or physical health issues.鈥淚f you鈥檙e generally healthy and use it to promote well-being, go for it,鈥 says Chhabra. 鈥淏ut if you utilize these devices as a first step before seeing a professional, you should go see the doctor or therapist instead, because the technology isn鈥檛 there yet.鈥
Don鈥檛 Overshare
Data from fitness trackers isn鈥檛 subject to federal health-care-privacy laws like HIPAA. 鈥淚t鈥檚 like posting your personal details to Facebook or Twitter,鈥 says John Torous of Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center. Consider these questions to understand the trade-offs you鈥檙e making to manage your health.
What information is tracked? Stress apps probably don鈥檛 need access to your microphone, contacts, or location to guide you through deep-breathing exercises. But you may have granted these permissions just by signing up. Before you dive in, turn off unnecessary sharing in your phone鈥檚 settings.
Who can see it? Read the terms of service to understand how your information is used. Can you edit or delete your own stats? Does the policy explicitly state that your data won鈥檛 be shared or sold? If not, you may want to steer clear.
Can you access your data? Even information you want to share may be siloed due to privacy concerns, business interests, or technical barriers. Verify that an app allows you to download a copy of your information, and check that the info is compatible with other programs you use.