NEW DELHI: Frequent reports about young adults dying of heart attacks have triggered a rush to use fitness bands and watches to monitor fitness, but the latest study shows that with time, these gadgets are either used merely to count steps or they are lying idle.
Most people in the consumer survey conducted in 278 districts of India agreed that these fancy gadgets, which also monitor sleep duration and breathing, are lying unused and discarded at homes.
On World Heart Day, experts said these branded gadgets can help you identify the risk factors, but one’s long-term survival depends on how one can reduce health-related threats so that one's heart remains healthy and strong.
Among the various reasons for people not using the gadgets, according to the survey conducted by LocalCircles, India’s leading social media platform, was that they get anxious if they cannot follow the daily regime as the fitness band puts pressure on them to do physical activities.
Some gadgets even monitor how many calories you have burned and consumed. Of the over 11,000 people in 278 Indian districts, only 21 per cent said they purchased fitness watches/bands and are still using them. While 50% said they have 1-2 such fitness watches, but they are lying unused, 21% said they have as many as three to four such gadgets but have dumped them.
The main reason for not using them, despite buying such costly smart watches, people said was the constant reminder to exercise was overwhelming them as they found it was not feasible for them to do physical activity due to the continuous pressure put up by the smartwatch.
On the other hand 35% said they stopped using the gadget as they exercise regularly and don't need to track their physical activity. And 13% even said that the need to charge the gadget daily/night hindered them from using it, while four per cent said they received it as a gift and were not into wearing a fitness watch or band.
Of the over 11,000 people, 66% said they use the fitness watch to track daily steps, 59% said they use it for seeing time/date, 14% said they use it to answer phone calls and seven percent for tracking other activities like cycling, swimming, etc. Only 34% said they use fitness bands to track heart rates.
According to Dr. Khushwant Popli, Head of the Department of Cardiothoracic and Vascular Surgery, Aakash Healthcare Super Speciality Hospital, Dwarka, Delhi, “These brand watches can help you in identifying the risk factors, but ultimately your long-term survival depends on how you can reduce these risk factors and get a good life."
He said there are various risk factors for cardiovascular disease, which include an unhealthy diet, especially which is high in saturated fat, trans fat and salt, physical inactivity, obesity, tobacco use, stress, poor sleep, family history of heart disease, and excessive alcohol consumption.
He advised reducing these risk factors for cardiovascular disease by inculcating a healthy diet, 30 minutes of moderate exercise daily, decreased salt and sugar intake, significantly refined sugars, control your diabetes mellitus, hypertension, and cholesterol and stop smoking and alcohol or if you have any chronic addiction.
The survey, comprising 64% of men and 36% of women, found that just like mobile phones, people change their fitness brands whenever an updated version is launched. But it is another matter when it comes to its usage.
According to Sachin Taparia, founder of LocalCircles, many users were unaware that these fitness watches and bands could monitor heart health despite various available brands.
He said last year, during the Garba celebrations in Gujarat, many people, even those as young as 17-year-old, died of heart attacks. According to the Gujarat authorities, a total of 1,052 people died of a heart attack in Gujarat in six months time till November end, with 80 per cent of the victims being in the age group 11-25 years age group.
According to the World Health Organisation (WHO), cardiovascular diseases (CVDs) remain a significant global health challenge responsible for over 18 million deaths each year.
The burden is hefty in the WHO South-East Asia Region, which includes India, where CVDs account for 3.9 million deaths annually, primarily due to heart attacks and strokes.