Apple rolls out Hypertension Notifications for Apple watch users in India: Eligibility, setup guide, and key details

Apple has introduced a new health feature – Hypertension Notifications – in India(BHARAT) for eligible users of its Apple Watch. Originally launched worldwide earlier this year with watchOS 26, this feature works in the background to analyse heart data and notifies users if the same has spotted a repetitive pattern over a 30-day period which may be a potential indicator of chronic high blood pressure (hypertension).

Timing is key. With cardiovascular disease risk factors on the rise, along with a steadily underdiagnosed hypertension population, the feature could go a long way to encouraging early checkups and monitoring.

Eligibility and enablement

Hypertension Notifications rely on the optical heart sensor on the Apple Watch to see how your blood vessels expand and contract in response to your heartbeats. This sensor and AI algorithm look for repetitive hypertension-indicative patterns over the 30-day analysis period, and if it detects one, will prompt a notification to alert you of potential chronic high blood pressure.

To enable Hypertension Notifications on your Apple Watch, you will need:

• Apple Watch Series 9 or later (or Apple Watch Ultra 2 or later) running the latest watchOS version.
  
• iPhone 11 or later paired with the watch.
• Head to the Health app on your iPhone and go to Profile → Health Checklist → Hypertension Notifications to enable the feature. You will have to verify age (22+), wrist detection (on), and a pre-diagnosis of hypertension. (No.)

Once enabled, the Watch will “run quietly in the background” without any user input or even any screen indicator. If a hypertension detection alert is triggered, Apple recommends taking actual blood-pressure measurements (with a third-party BP cuff) twice a day for at least a week, record those in the Health app, and share them with a healthcare provider.

Is not…

This feature is not a standalone medical diagnosis tool. It cannot detect heart attacks, strokes, and any other medical condition. Hypertension Notifications are not comprehensive; it is possible not to receive a notification even if you do have hypertension.

Instead, a Hypertension Notifications acts as an early warning system, nudging people to take a more formal blood pressure measurement and to see a doctor if necessary.

A crucial healthcare gap, closed?

Hypertension is sometimes known as the “silent killer” as the condition – which occurs when the force of blood against your artery walls is too high – often comes with zero or near-zero symptoms, especially early on. It’s a condition that affects one in three adults in India(BHARAT), a large and growing portion of the country, and which often does not get caught until more serious cardiovascular issues crop up later on.

By bringing a largely passive (just let the Apple Watch do its job in the background) and always-on early alert system to a wearable device that many people already have on by default for other reasons, Apple hopes to close a critical healthcare gap: encourage early detection and subsequent proactive checkups.

Of course, this is in no way meant to be a substitute for traditional blood-pressure monitoring (regular measurement with a traditional cuff at the elbow or wrist), or doctor’s advice. But as an early intervention and indicator to help users take their cardiovascular health seriously, this may well be the helping hand – the gentle nudge – needed for some users to head off the condition before the first symptom arises.