Apple New Health Features
If you’re an iPhone owner or user, you will notice new health features on your device today. Apple will also include these updates to iPad and Apple Watch.
It means that all three platforms will have features that urge users to follow healthy behaviors and provide ways to address depression.
The new health features were announced during the Worldwide Developers Conference 2023 on Monday. The iPhone manufacturer wants to empower people to take a proactive approach to their health. The company expands the already wide range of health and wellness tools that it offers across iPhone, iPad, and Apple Watch.
“Mental health and vision health are important, but often overlooked, and we’re excited to introduce features that offer valuable new insights to provide users with an even better understanding of their health. These insights help support users in their daily decisions and offer more informed conversations with their doctors.” – Apple
iOS 17
When you update your iDevice to iOS 17, you will notice various new features on the Health app. For instance, you can now identify your emotions ranging from very pleasant to very unpleasant. These emotions are picked through a visual representation of emotions.
You can choose associations you think have the greatest impact on your feelings. The Health app will also have anxiety and depression assessments to tell you how at-risk you are for depression.
In some studies, heart rate is slowed while feelings of sadness are decreased when naming emotions. When you identify your feelings, it can help you manage your difficult emotions. It can also help in appreciating positive moments more and improving well-being.
When the pandemic hit in 2020, experts recorded a 25% increase in anxiety and depression cases around the world. According to the National Institute for Mental Health, 8.4% of US adults had a major depressive episode in 2019. The number jumped to 10.5% for females.
Along with depression and anxiety, the new Apple health features also aim to handle nearsightedness. They now encourage users to spend more time outdoors. If you have an Apple Watch, it can measure the time you spent in daylight with the use of the ambient light sensor. You can view the time with the Health app.
The design of the Health app on iPad is optimized for the large display. You can get insight into your health data along with trends and highlights.
Avoiding Myopia
The International Myopia Institute recommends that kids must spend at least 80 minutes a day outside. Kids must also learn how to view a device to avoid myopia. And this is the goal of the company’s new Screen Distance feature.
The feature utilizes the same TrueDepth feature to identify faces. This will encourage you to move your device further away and prevent the development of myopia.
Journal
The company also announced Journal. This is a new journaling app for iPhone users to log their daily cavities. It is the latest step into the HW segment. It will be released later this year. The app will use machine learning to give you personalized suggestions to commemorate within your digital journal.
