Once you cross age 40, you have a 1 in 4 chance of developing AFib.
The Heart Rhythm Society says atrial fibrillation is the most common type of cardiac arrhythmia. A heart beating too fast, too slow or skipping beats shows it’s irregular.
Detecting AFib matters because an irregular heartbeat may mean your heart isn’t pumping blood out to your body normally. Checking for signs of this issue is important because it often goes undetected.
Simple electrocardiogram (ECG or EKG) technology can measure your heart’s activity. It may be something to look into as you age or if you have experienced irregular heartbeat episodes in the past.
Many major technology manufacturers have the capability to give users the ability to perform a personal EKG on demand.
Notably, they all remind users not to rely on their own measurements to detect heart attacks. But personal EKG monitoring options can help you know whether your heart is beating as it should as you go about your daily life.
Portable heart monitoring card
The newest portable method is the KardiaMobile Card that fits in your wallet. This Bluetooth-enabled device records a medical-grade EKG in seconds with no Wi-Fi required.
A user starts the reading by placing two fingers on the electrodes embedded in the card. It’s the only credit-card-sized personal EKG cleared by the Federal Drug Administration, and it costs $99.
Unlike other personal EKG devices, which only detect an irregular heart rhythm, the KardiaMobile Card can also detect bradycardia (when the heart is beating too slow) and tachycardia (when the heart is beating too fast).
The card works with Android or iOS devices, was invented by cardiologists and is Health Savings Account/Flexible Savings Account eligible.
The battery is nonreplaceable and will last about two years.
Oura ring
You’re likely seeing more and more people using wearables in the form of rings to track health. The $299 Oura ring checks heart rates in real time by using LEDs.
The process of photoplethysmography shines a light on your skin and measures how much light reflects back. When blood vessels are contracted, less light is absorbed than when they are expanded, so the ring can track a pulse.
Users can see a 24-hour heart rate graph on the app’s home screen and can take a reading by tapping the large heart icon.
After staying still for 10 seconds, the graph updates with the most recent reading. While the ring doesn’t use EKG technology, the heart rate variability can help predict AFib.
Oura’s blog tells the story of a 61-year-old woman who woke up with no heart rate data on her app — something that had never happened before. She emailed support and after they responded that arrhythmia could affect the readings, she made an appointment with her health care provider.
While she had experienced a couple of AFib episodes a decade or so before, she wasn’t feeling anything irregular like she had in those instances. The health care provider confirmed she was experiencing AFib. The Oura ring had picked it up almost a week prior to her diagnosis.
The blog explains how “she got her heart jolted back into normal rhythm and her ring immediately started showing her heart rate data again.”
Measure heart health with Apple Watch
The National Institutes of Health report that almost 1 in 3 Americans are walking around with a wearable on their wrist. Many of those have EKG capabilities.
The Apple Watch Series 4 and up starts at $249 and can detect irregular heart rhythms by completing an electrical circuit across a user’s body. You can enable notifications from the Heart Rate app on your watch so you’ll know when you may want to see medical advice.
Go to the Apple Watch app and tap My Watch>Heart>High Heart Rate. Then choose a beats per minute setting to get an alert if your heart rate goes above or below those set BPMs.
You can also get notifications for any irregular rhythms in your heartbeat. The watch only occasionally checks, so Apple notes this feature is not for anyone under 22 years old or those with a history of AFib.
To enable this feature, open the Health app and tap Browse>Heart>Irregular Rhythm Notifications. Once you enable it there, you can use your Apple Watch app to turn notifications on and off.