The longstanding rumors of an Apple Watch with blood sugar monitoring just
gained some credibility. The Telegraph and Forbes report that UK health tech
firm Rockley Photonics recently confirmed in an SEC filing that Apple has been
its largest customer for the past two years, and that it has a continuing deal
to develop future products. Rockley's focus has been on sensors that track
blood glucose, pressure and even alcohol levels, suggesting that at least one
of these features will be available in a future Apple Watch.
Apple's support for diabetics has so far been limited to carrying
third-party monitors in its stores.
There's no guarantee the Rockley deal will lead to shipping products. Apple
hasn't been shy about focusing the Apple Watch on health, however, and there's
plenty of industry interest in developing wearable blood sugar sensors that
don't require needles. If Apple can build the technology into a mainstream
product like the Watch, it could offer an advantage to anyone tired of jabbing
themselves to keep their diabetes in check.
Rockley's other technologies could help, too. Blood pressure tracking could
alert you to issues like stress, and alcohol monitoring might keep your
drinking in moderation. Whether or not that's feasible is another matter. Apple
still has to consider factors like battery life and price, and it's entirely
possible that you could be waiting a while for all these features (assuming
they ever ship) even if the tech is otherwise ready.
