What is Ovulation Tracking in Apple Watch?
Ovulation Tracking is inherently a feature in the Cycle Tracker that utilizes the temperature sensor in your new Apple Watch to provide retrospective ovulation estimates. The new Apple Watch Series 8 and Series Ultra, are both equipped with two temperature sensors to get accurate readings. This helps you get predictions based on your cycle on when you might have ovulated which can help you with family planning at great lengths.
Ovulation Tracking Compatible Apple Watches
Ovulation tracking requires temperature sensors which are currently only available in the Apple Watch Series 8 and Series Ultra. All older models of the Apple Watch be it SE or non-SE editions do not support ovulation tracking. Many users had also expected the new Apple Watch SE to come with this feature but sadly that isn’t the case. The new SE is a budget offering and thus temperature sensors are one of the areas Apple has cut down on to reduce its cost. Without temperature sensors, the new SE can not provide you with retrospective ovulation estimates.
How Does Ovulation Tracking Work?
Ovulation tracking works by getting your body temperature periodically and then comparing it with your baseline. Apple Watch can sense changes as minimal as 0.1°C which allows it to be pretty accurate when comparing data. The watch will track your body temperature every 5 seconds when you’re sleeping to get a read on any deviations from your baseline reading. The watch will then compare your temperature data to your cycle tracking data to generate retrospective ovulation estimates. To be precise, Apple Watch looks for Biphsic shifts which as an increase in your body temperature due to your hormones. This can indicate ovulation and tracking this data over time can help the watch provide retrospective ovulation estimates. You can even access this data manually to track your biphasic shifts on your own. Previously this was done using thermometers and journals. Apple Watch significantly reduces the manual labor involved in this process by automating most of it. You can then share your ovulation data with your healthcare provider and partner to further increase your chances of conceiving. As discussed above Apple Watch Series 8 and Series Ultra comes with two temperature sensors to help along with this tracking. One sensor sits atop the Watch while the other sits in the crystal underneath, touching your wrists. This allows the watch to compare readings and adjust for environmental deviations accordingly. This helps prevent misidentified readings which could interfere with ovulation tracking.
Cycle Tracking and Temperature Sensors
The new temperature sensors on the Apple Watch also help with your cycle tracking in general by monitoring temperature changes during the night and then corroborating them with your cycle tracking data. Temperature changes are monitored during the night as your blood vessels are dilated when you’re asleep. This allows for more accurate data which in turn can be used to predict and identify symptoms relating to major health issues. Using the temperature sensors can help you track deviations from your cycle which might indicate a bigger health issue. If this happens to be the case, you can get in touch with your health care provider for further diagnosis and treatment. Some conditions that can be diagnosed with such deviations include Thyroid disorders and PCOS according to the company. These are major health concerns and the new temperature sensors can help you further identify them using your cycle tracking data.
Is Your Ovulation Tracking Data Private?
Yes, your data is completely private and stored locally on your device and encrypted with your device passcode and Apple ID. If you’re syncing your Health app data to iCloud then all your data is end-to-end encrypted and the encryption key is not accessible by anyone, even Apple. Not only this, but you also get access to dedicated toggles in the health app that will help provide more granular control over what you share. For example, you can only choose to share your cycle tracking data or your ovulation data depending on your preferences. These toggles are also available for all other activities tracked by the Health app on your device.
Things You Should Keep in Mind When Using Ovulation Tracking
While Ovulation tracking may seem like a great feature there are still a few things that you should keep in mind. Mainly how the readings work and how should be using them. Here are a few things you should be aware of when using the Apple Watch to get retrospective ovulation estimates.
Tracking: There is a major reason why Apple uses the term retrospective ovulation estimates and that is because they are indeed just estimates. While these estimates can be pretty accurate. they rely on variables that can vary from person to person. Thus you should take your estimates with a grain of salt and should not treat them as a replacement for your health care provider.
Birth Control: Another thing to stress on is the fact that you can not use Ovulation tracking as a form of birth control. These are estimates and should be treated like that. Apple has explicitly requested all users across many places to refrain from using ovulation tracking as a form of birth control.
Diagnosis: While the data from your watch can seem pretty promising and accurate, it is not a replacement for a healthcare diagnosis. The data from your watch should not be used to explicitly diagnose health conditions relating to you. Apple recommends you use such data as warning signs and get a diagnosis from your healthcare provider instead.
Temperature readings: The Temperature readings taken from an Apple watch should not be treated as a replacement for your thermometer. These readings can be influenced by many environmental factors as well as factors specific to your body.
Generally it is a good idea to get in touch with your healthcare provider if you find discrepancies in your health data. You shouldn’t be treating your Apple Watch as a replacement for your immediate health care provider.
Can you share your ovulation data with your health provider?
Yes, as discussed above you can easily share your data from the Health app with your health care provider. You get full control over what and how you wish to share your data with someone.
How reliable are readings from the temperature sensor?
The temperature sensor readings are pretty reliable but are also affected by environmental factors and the Apple Watch’s components. As discussed above, it should not be treated as a replacement for your thermometer.
Do I need to track my cycle to use this feature?
Yes, you will need to track your cycle to get retrospective ovulation estimates from your Apple Watch.
Final Words
Family Planning can be a daunting task and anything that helps you along the way is the most anyone can ask for. The new Ovulation tracking feature in Apple Watch is a step in the right direction and I hope the post above helped you learn everything you need to know about it.
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