87% of those who use them have adopted new health and wellness behaviors
The smart watches they help protect health, with 87% of those using them adopting new health and wellness behaviors.
In particular, according to the results of a pan-European survey carried out on behalf of Huawei, consumers’ knowledge of what constitutes good health and behaviors that help it is limited.
At the same time, the research highlights the untapped potential of smart watches for achieving a healthy lifestyle.
According to the research:
- Only 50% of European citizens say they are satisfied with their physical condition. 91% of respondents want to improve at least one health-related aspect of their lifestyle.
- Most smartwatch users (88%) claim that their device can help improve their physical health. 87% have introduced at least one new wellness habit as a result of the data their smartwatch gave them.
- Mental health tops the list of concerns, with sleep and stress cited as two top concerns. However, awareness of important health indicators is very limited
- More than half (54%) of Europeans do not have regular medical check-ups; however, 63% of smartwatch users have visited their doctor after receiving an abnormal health reading from their device
The HUAWEI European Health Survey 2023 conducted by Ipsos reveals the untapped potential benefits of smartwatches at a time when preventive care and easy access to health information are more critical than ever. “Mental and physical health is at the top of the agenda for individuals and society at large,” observes William Tian, president of Europe, Huawei Consumer Business Group.
Our research revealed some disturbing realities while proving the positive impact of a health-focused smartwatch.” Among the report’s key findings is that on average, smartwatch users in Europe are 51% more likely to know accurate readings for all key health metrics compared to non-users. Additionally, they are 75% more likely to know their target body fat measurement and 71% more likely to know their correct daily calorie goal.
Smartwatch users check their basic health metrics more than twice as often as non-users. Specifically, they monitor heart rate, blood oxygen saturation, and calories burned nearly three times more often than people without a device (2.8x, 2.7x, and 2.6x, respectively). Among the daily metrics, physical activity, measured in steps, dominates, with nearly half of users tracking their steps daily, contributing significantly to improving health.
Smartwatch users take health alerts seriously, with over 74% seeking advice when their device alerts them to abnormal health indicators, leading 63% to visit their doctor for further analysis.
Smartwatch users are overwhelmingly positive about their device, with 88% of users agreeing that their smartwatch can help improve their physical health, 86% their overall quality of life, and 76% their mental health.
Advanced metrics readily available from smart watches after investment in research and innovation
Over the past decade, as reported, Huawei has developed a worldwide portfolio of wearable technology in hardware, software and services. Its research and innovation in health and fitness technology has enabled Huawei to develop sophisticated and accurate smart sensing for the whole body. The tech giant has gone on to establish three health labs around the world since 2016 in Xi’an and Songshan Lake in China and this year in Helsinki, Finland.
Health Lab Finland is staffed with an interdisciplinary scientific research team consisting of 6 PhDs and 20 experts from 5 main areas – physiology, artificial intelligence, machine learning, software testing and software engineering – from 7 EU countries. This ensures that every field of sports and health research reaches the advanced standards of the world. HUAWEI also has a series of smartwatches in the Greek market such as HUAWEI WATCH 4 Pro, HUAWEI WATCH Ultimate and others. Among other things, they have the ability to personalize the users’ health and sports journey with technology assistants with enhanced features for sports and health monitoring.
Consumers have a 30% more accurate measurement of their heart health, even during vigorous activities or cold environments. Depending on the model, technologies have also been introduced for better awareness of the sleep cycle to adjust the way they sleep. This includes a Sleep Breathing Awareness feature that detects breathing patterns during sleep, giving the user additional information about their breathing health while they sleep.
