The Apple Watch isn"t simply just another smartwatch out there in the market. Aside from the power of accessing apps right from your wrist, it also can track your health, and see how your heart is doing.
With that in mind, it seems that Apple is exerting more effort towards using technology to better monitor your well-being. According to a report by CNBC, Apple has hired a small team of biomedical engineers to work in an office in Palo Alto to develop sensors that can non-invasively and continuously monitor blood sugar levels to better treat diabetes.
The Cupertino company has also reportedly been conducting feasibility trials at clinical stores across the San Francisco Bay Area, and has hired consultants to figure out regulatory pathways.
This "super secret initiative" was initially envisioned by the late Apple CEO Steve Jobs, and the effort has been going on for at least five years, say the sources close to CNBC. Jobs envisioned wearable devices, like smartwatches, being used to monitor important body vitals, such as oxygen levels, heart rate, and blood glucose.
Sources also state that Apple is developing optical sensors, which involve shining light through the skin to measure levels of glucose. In turn, this could help improve diagnosis of patients, as well as more accurate treatment for them.
Should the initiative become a total breakthrough, it could make devices like the Apple Watch a must-have product, especially for people who suffer from diabetes, instead of making it simply an accessory that complements our smartphones and fashion sense.
Apple , however, has not publicly commented regarding the report.
The Apple Watch is already being used towards improving the health of people around the world. In London, England, a hospital was found to be using the Apple wearable to remind chemotherapy patients in taking their medication. Also, the watch"s heart rate monitor was able to help save a man"s life in California, with the device"s findings matching up to a doctor"s test.
Source: CNBC via The Next Web | Image via Apple