Garmin is integrating a new beta feature called “Health Status” into its ecosystem. According to DC Rainmaker, it consolidates five core sleep-derived metrics, which it tracks overnight and compares to your personal baseline. This baseline is established over a period of three to four weeks. The purpose of the feature is to provide context to existing data by flagging readings that fall outside your typical range as “outliers,” which are shown in red. Garmin makes it clear this is not a diagnostic tool but rather a warning light for potential issues like poor recovery, overtraining, illness, or stress.
What are the Feature Tracks
The “Health Status” feature uses five key data points:
- Heart rate: Your current heart rate.
- Heart rate variability (HRV): The variation in time between each heartbeat.
- Breathing rate: The number of breaths you take per minute.
- Blood oxygen saturation: The level of oxygen in your blood.
- Skin temperature: Your body’s skin temperature.
These individual data points are displayed clearly and are also evaluated against your personal baseline.
Early Sickness Detection
While all this data can be viewed elsewhere, Garmin’s new feature focuses on providing a quick, at-a-glance overview of your health. The goal is to help users quickly identify if any parameters might be related to an illness. Of course, this function is not a substitute for a doctor’s visit, but it could provide a hint before a user even feels sick. For example, if you notice an unusual trend, it might be a good idea to reduce your workout intensity and opt for a relaxing bike ride instead of a hard run.
How to Access the Feature
The Health Status feature is currently accessible through the Garmin Connect web dashboard (Use this direct link to access the Health Status page), though it is not yet available on the Garmin Connect mobile app. On some watches, like the Fenix 8, you can access it by adding a Health Status widget. Garmin plans to roll it out to a wide range of devices through firmware updates, starting with those that already track the necessary metrics.
Availability
Garmin plans to roll it out to a wide range of devices through firmware updates, starting with those that already track the necessary metrics. The first group of watches to get access via firmware updates includes the Venu 3, Vivoactive 5, Forerunner 255, 955, 165, 265, 965, and the Fenix 7 lineup. A second group of devices, including the Venu X1, Vivoactive 6, Forerunner 570, 970, and Fenix 8 series, will get both Garmin Connect and on-device widget support.
Also Read: New Garmin Lifestyle Logging feature rolling out to all users: What it is and how it works
