Samsung’s Antioxidant Index on Galaxy Watch8 transforms what once seemed like science fiction into everyday technology. In five seconds, a thumb scan returns precise carotenoid levels – the industry’s first measurable nutrition index.

By miniaturizing lab-grade sensor technology with exceptional accuracy, it turns your diet into an actionable metric for healthier aging. Establishing this new benchmark in wearable health tracking required years of intensive R&D, countless prototypes and unwavering grit.

Breaking New Ground in Nutrition Tracking

Back in 2018, Samsung saw a critical gap in wearables: we could count every step and calorie, yet there was no simple way to measure how our diet impacted our health. Deeper nutritional insights were locked behind expensive and time-consuming lab tests, out of reach for many people.

As people live longer, the focus is shifting from simply increasing lifespan to improving the quality of those additional years.

“In this context, antioxidation naturally gains attention as a method to slow down aging,” explains Dr. Hyojee Joung, a Seoul National University¹ public health nutrition expert who guided parts of the tech’s development. “If antioxidant management is neglected, Reactive Oxygen Species (ROS) accumulate in the body, increasing the risk of chronic diseases such as cardiovascular disease, diabetes and cancer.”

This realization made antioxidants the cornerstone of Samsung’s mission. Engineers and scientists focused on carotenoids – key antioxidants and proven indicators of fruit and vegetable intake – to create a device small enough to sit on your wrist, yet powerful enough to turn complex antioxidant data into simple, actionable health insights for everyone.

The first prototype of the spectroscopy-based antioxidant sensor.

A clinical-ready version of the sensor.

A prototype designed for use in skincare products.

Challenge #1: How to Shrink the Lab-Grade Sensor Technology

From day one, the dream of a nutrition-tracking wearable hit an immediate snag: traditional methods for measuring carotenoid levels like Raman spectroscopy are laser-based, non-invasive and precise, but rely on bulky machines that are far from wearable. So the team’s first mission was to shrink the lab-grade tech into a coin-sized sensor.

After seven years of rigorous testing and optimizing since the first prototype, the team developed the miniaturized sensor, a groundbreaking tech that combines multi-wavelength LEDs with a custom photodetector array to provide accurate carotenoid readings in a compact design.

“Our breakthrough was integrating reflectance spectroscopy with LEDs, which allowed us to miniaturize the technology while maintaining a high level of accuracy,” explains Jinyoung Park, a developer from Digital Health team at Samsung Electronics.

▲ Galaxy Watch8’s LED-PD sensor modules.

Unlike lasers, which emit a sharp, narrow wavelength, LEDs emit a broader wavelength range. By analyzing how much light is absorbed by the skin at multiple wavelengths through photodiodes², the watch estimates carotenoid levels with impressive accuracy. The advanced algorithms that continuously calibrate in real-time also support precision while delivering personalized insights to each user.

▲ The LED-PD prototype testbed at the back of Galaxy Watch8.

Challenge #2: How to Ensure the Tech Reaches Everyone

Creating a coin-sized carotenoid sensor was a major milestone, but the next challenge was ensuring it could work accurately and reliably across diverse skin types, making it truly accessible to everyone.

To overcome challenges like melanin interference in darker skin tones, Samsung’s engineers opted to use the fingertip for measurements since it has the least melanin across all ethnic groups. They also added simple tweaks, like light fingertip pressure during scans, which helps temporarily reduce blood flow and hemoglobin interference, making the results more accurate.

Extensive trials conducted at Samsung Medical Center³ included hundreds of participants, validating the sensor’s performance. This paved the way for a feature that seamlessly transitioned from the lab to users worldwide, offering an inclusive solution designed for everyday life.

How It Works

Carotenoids are the natural red, yellow and green pigments found in fruits and vegetables. Since our bodies can’t produce carotenoids on their own, the levels stored in the body offer a clear snapshot of how much fruit and vegetables someone has been eating.

This is where your Antioxidant Index score comes in, reflecting your carotenoid levels based on these categories:

• Very low: Less than 50% of the daily WHO recommendation of 400g per day.
• Low: Between 50%–100%.
• Optimal: 100% or more.

“Skin carotenoids metabolize and accumulate in tissues gradually, so short-term changes in fruit and vegetable intake won’t immediately appear in the score,” explains Dr. Hyojee Joung. “Our research shows that increased carotenoid intake leads to a meaningful rise in skin carotenoid levels after about one to two weeks, making the Index a valuable tool for tracking consistent, long-term dietary habits.”

Lifestyle factors like sleep quality, stress levels, and physical activity also influence the Index, making it a well-rounded indicator of overall health. Paired with other Galaxy Watch8 features like sleep coaching, activity tracking and Vascular Load monitoring, the Antioxidant Index offers a holistic view of your well-being, empowering smarter decisions for healthier aging.

▲ The Antioxidant Index feature measures carotenoid levels in seconds with the sensor on the back of the Galaxy Watch8 and provides additional nutritional insights on paired Galaxy smartphones.

Your Health, Reimagined

“New wearable sensors can play a role in helping people build healthy eating habits by tracking and encouraging sufficient daily intake of fruits and vegetables,” says Professor Yoonho Choi from Samsung Medical Center. “Over time, this simple practice can help prevent some cancers and other age-related diseases, making it a very effective way to support long-term health.”

Antioxidants are an emerging area of focus, but research has been limited due to the challenges of accurate measurement. Galaxy Watch8’s Antioxidant Index goes beyond current industry developments and delivers meaningful innovation.

Samsung’s ability to measure antioxidant levels with precision, acknowledged by experts as a benchmark for future research, represents a breakthrough in health monitoring. By helping users identify risks early and take proactive steps towards better health, Samsung is paving the way for a smarter, more proactive approach to wellness and redefining the role of wearables in preventative healthcare.

¹Seoul National University is a leading academic institution in South Korea.
²Photodiodes are semiconductor devices that convert light into electrical signals.
³Samsung Medical Center in Seoul, South Korea, is a leading medical institution known for its patient-centered care, advanced medical technologies, and specialized centers such as the Comprehensive Cancer and Proton Therapy Centers.

Samsung Newsroom traced the evolution of the Galaxy Watch series over the past decade — as the device transcended its traditional role and redefined what it meant to be a watch.

Thinking Outside the Box: Opening a New Era of Smartwatch

Unveiled in September 2013, the revolutionary Galaxy Gear brought the Galaxy experience closer to everyday life. The wearable featured a 41.4-millimeter display that allowed users to make and receive calls, schedule events, set alarms and check the weather with their voice. Photos and short videos could be captured in the moment without smartphones, thanks to the 1.9-megapixel camera attached to the strap and the ingenious Memographer feature. More than a wristwatch, the Galaxy Gear set the stage for a new era of smartwatches.

Samsung launched the second-generation Samsung Gear2 in February 2014. Lighter and thinner than its predecessor, this device was equipped with a longer-lasting battery and packed with more features that could be used without a smartphone. Users could monitor their heart rate and track their exercise in real time with the heart rate sensor or turn the watch into a standalone music player with the embedded file storage. The Samsung Gear2 Neo was introduced at the same time, offering consumers an additional option with all the same features of the Samsung Gear2 except the camera.

Released in 2014, the Samsung Gear S was Samsung’s first smartwatch to feature a large, curved Super AMOLED display that wrapped around the user’s wrist — supporting 3G and Wi-Fi without a smartphone connection. The Samsung Gear S2, its 2015 successor, was Samsung’s first smartwatch with a circular display and the rotating bezel that is now a hallmark of the Galaxy Watch Classic lineup.

In 2016, Samsung launched the Samsung Gear S3 which turned heads with an elegant design inspired by traditional timepieces and more innovative functions that improved daily life. The Always On Display feature continuously showed the time on users’ wrists with the Super AMOLED display that supports 16 million colors. Featuring a built-in speaker and microphone, the device allowed users to take calls on speakerphone without a Bluetooth headset. Meanwhile, the GPS helped users record exercise history or check routes on maps without a smartphone.

Samsung Gear Sport, the last model in the Samsung Gear series, offered a sporty design for those with an active lifestyle. Boasting 5 ATM water resistance, the watch could be worn while swimming. Improved water resistance functions included Water lock mode which prevents unintentional activation of the touchscreen in strong currents.

Galaxy Watch: A New Partner for Balanced Lifestyles

In August 2018, the Galaxy Watch series was born. This rebrand reflected the diverse and ever-expanding functions of a smartwatch in today’s world — as a health tracker, personal assistant, fashion accessory and much more. To enhance the user experience and highlight Samsung’s smartwatch identity, the wearable maintained the signature circular bezel from previous models but added an hourly alarm and ticking sound of the second hand for the first time. Available in three colors and 42- and 46-millimeter sizes, this versatile device offered stress management and sleep management features to enhance users’ health and wellness. Users could keep track of workouts from 39 different kinds of exercises as well, more than any other watch on the market at the time.

Samsung launched a new lineup of smartwatches in February 2019 with the Galaxy Watch Active, specifically designed for users with active lifestyles. Boasting a 28.1-millimeter Super AMOLED display, this watch retained the signature circular shape but eliminated the bezel and used aluminum to decrease the weight by 25 grams. The 20-millimeter watchband made of flexible fluoroelastomer offered fashion-conscious users a variety of options to express their individuality. On the other hand, health-conscious users could track their exercise, sleep, stress levels and blood pressure in real time — they could even check how long they spent in rapid-eye movement (REM) sleep versus the other three sleep stages.

In August 2019, the Galaxy Watch Active2 took personalized health and wellness management to the next level for people seeking healthier lifestyles. Apart from the rotating bezel and other user experience enhancements, the My Style feature provided more stylish, customized watch faces to users. The wearable was the perfect partner in helping users adopt healthier and more balanced lifestyles through the upgraded stress and sleep management functions as well as the exercise feature that could track more than 39 different types of workouts. Moreover, the upgraded Galaxy ecosystem improved connectivity and everyday convenience.

A New Era: Integrated Healthcare Is Here

After two years, Samsung brought health seekers the Galaxy Watch3 in August 2020. Maintaining the circular bezel made of stainless steel, users could choose from a larger 41- or 45-millimeter display with a lighter, thinner body. For the first time in Galaxy history, Samsung added an even lighter, stronger and more premium model made of titanium. The device provided an integrated healthcare experience from the wrist with health, fitness, sleep management and blood pressure monitoring. In addition, Samsung introduced electrocardiogram (ECG) readings and a blood oxygen feature to track oxygen saturation over time.

The Galaxy Watch4 series redefined the smartwatch experience in August 2021 — with two models, the modern and minimalistic Galaxy Watch4 and the more traditional Galaxy Watch4 Classic featuring the signature rotating bezel. Launched for the first time, the BioActive Sensor measured various health indicators such as blood pressure, ECG and blood oxygen saturation levels more accurately than the previous watch. Users wanting more holistic health insights could measure their body composition by simply placing two fingers on the smartwatch to learn how to manage and achieve their health goals. The wearable was equipped with the new Wear OS, developed jointly with Google, so that users could access a larger variety of applications. Meanwhile, the new One UI Watch update significantly enhanced the user experience by seamlessly connecting the watch with Samsung smartphones, wireless earbuds and other devices.

Above Wrist: A Partner To Better Know Yourself

In August 2022, Samsung opened the next chapter of smartwatches with the Galaxy Watch5 series. Optimal for outdoor sports, the Galaxy Watch5 Pro was newly introduced in this lineup. The more advanced Samsung BioActive Sensor improved the accuracy of body composition, heart rate and ECG monitoring measurements. Notably, a newly equipped temperature sensor on the Galaxy Watch5 provided skin temperature-based predictions to help women conveniently track their menstrual cycles.

Samsung once again stood by its health-seeking users with the Galaxy Watch6 series, unveiled in July 2023. This wearable offers holistic health features to provide more personalized, innovative health solutions to users who want to better manage their health. Complete with a slimmer bezel, the display is about 20% larger than its predecessors to help users see more information at a glance. Galaxy Watch6 is designed with the signature circular design, whereas the Galaxy Watch6 Classic features a rotating bezel reminiscent of analog watches. A new button replaced the spring-bar structure, allowing users to easily switch their watchbands with one click.

With an even more sensitive BioActive sensor and a high-performance processor, health metrics became more specialized — ranging from sleep management and fitness coaching to heart health monitoring.

An AI-Based Galaxy Health Experience and the Next-Generation Watch

Samsung unveiled One UI 6 Watch in May 2024. With this, the company has successfully transformed the Galaxy Watch into a total digital healthcare assistant that measures indicators such as heart rate, sleep patterns and more. Health insights are more comprehensive and detailed than ever before, and users now receive personalized messages powered by AI to motivate them to reach their health goals. Moreover, the upcoming Galaxy Watch series to be released in the second half of this year will measure Advanced Glycation End Products (AGEs) with an updated BioActive Sensor that features light-emitting diodes (LEDs) in more colors and newly designed photodiodes.

Samsung is constantly expanding its horizons and will continue to do so. Each new wearable not only offers basic watch functions but also delivers services that younger generations have come to expect. Striving to become the closest partner that values every exciting and precious moment in each user’s life, Samsung has pushed the boundaries of the smartwatch for more than a decade — and the best is yet to come.

The rapid evolution of wearable technology has highlighted the potential to use our devices not only to elevate our daily experiences but also to gain deeper insights into our holistic well-being. From empowering individuals to track their wellness to providing a wealth of health-related data, wearables like the Galaxy Watch series¹ have begun to redefine how we approach healthcare. Discover how Samsung Electronics’ technology has impacted the lives and health of two individuals.

Ms. A, a 70-year-old woman with a history of cardiac surgery, recently experienced dizziness. So, she opted for an ECG patch test, but the findings were within the bounds of normalcy. Ms. A, mindful of her age and history of arrhythmia, wanted to monitor her health condition constantly. In response, the medical team at her hospital in South Korea recommended she use a Galaxy Watch along with a hospital-linked app to monitor her health status.

Following her outpatient visit, Ms. A continued wearing the Galaxy Watch in her daily life. On one occasion, she again experienced dizziness. The heart rate measured by the Galaxy Watch was slow, 40 beats per minute. This data was promptly shared with the ECG Reading Center at Sejong Hospital in Incheon, and she was told to come directly to the hospital with suspicion that she might be in an emergency condition. Ms. A was quickly admitted to the emergency room and underwent surgery to insert a pacemaker, a device that provides artificial stimulation to the heart when its function deteriorates. Thankfully, she safely left the hospital after the successful procedure.

Mr. B, a 62-year-old man residing in Brazil, was discharged from the hospital after heart valve surgery. Following the medical staff’s recommendation for a clinical study, he wore a Galaxy Watch daily and checked his physical conditions, including an electrocardiogram (ECG). During the remote observation period, Abnormal signals had been consistently detected by Mr.B’s Galaxy Watch. To address this, the hospital’s medical staff conducted a thorough video consultation. Through this consultation, the staff discovered that Mr.B has Parkinson’s disease, allowing the hospital to provide appropriate clinical guidance.

Patients experiencing motor symptoms or cognitive impairment, like those with Parkinson’s disease, need extra care during the post-surgery recovery phase. In this case, Parkinson’s disease wasn’t a major consideration at the time of his surgery, but the medical team can give Mr.B the right guidance with the abnormal data detected by Mr. B’s Galaxy Watch.

Ms. A, reflecting on her experience, said, “With the Galaxy Watch, I could keep an eye on my health more regularly.”

“Wearable devices such as the Galaxy Watch have made it easy to monitor health conditions in daily life,” explained an official from Sejong Hospital in Incheon, South Korea. “Continuous monitoring is required even after successful surgery, and we expect that wearable devices such as the Galaxy Watch have the potential to help in health management and monitoring.”

Thanks to innovative advanced Samsung’s BioActive sensor, the Galaxy Watch series delivers extensive readings — ECG,² heart rate, blood pressure³ and body composition⁴ — and even provides workout guides to enhance exercise routines and coaching to improve sleep quality.⁵ Looking ahead, the health management capabilities of the Galaxy Watch are expected to play an even more significant role in comprehensively understanding and managing the wellness of people all over the world.

* Names have been changed to protect the privacy of the patients.

¹ Intended for general wellness and fitness purposes only. Not intended for use in detection, diagnosis, treatment, monitoring or management of any medical condition or disease. Any health-related information accessed through the device and/or application should not be treated as medical advice. Users should seek any medical advice from a physician. Certain features may vary by market, carrier or the paired device.
² The ECG feature is only available in select markets. It is not intended to replace traditional methods of diagnosis or treatment. The feature is not intended for users with known arrhythmias other than AFib. Users should not interpret or take clinical action based on the device output without consultation of a qualified healthcare professional.
³ The Blood Pressure feature is only available in select markets. To ensure accuracy, users should calibrate their device every four weeks with a traditional blood pressure cuff. The BP feature cannot diagnose hypertension, other conditions or check for signs of a heart attack. It is not meant to replace traditional methods of diagnosis or treatment by a qualified healthcare professional.
⁴ Body composition should not be used if you have an implanted pacemaker or other implanted medical devices or if you are pregnant. Measurement results may not be accurate if you are under 20 years old. Intended for general wellness and fitness purposes only.
⁵ Sleep features are intended for general wellness and fitness purposes only. The measurements are for your personal reference only. Please consult a medical professional for advice.

Samsung Electronics today announced a new Open Innovation Initiative at the Samsung Developer Conference 2023 (SDC23) in San Francisco. Collaborating with the MIT(Massachusetts Institute of Technology) Media Lab, Brigham & Women’s Hospital, Tulane University School of Medicine and Samsung Medical Center, the new research program will explore enhancements to the digital health ecosystem and new approaches to wellness. With the research findings from these collaborations, Samsung will strive to develop its technology further to support the healthcare industry, expand understanding of individuals’ minds and bodies and unlock the full wellness potential of personal devices.

“Around the world, innovation and transformational health research are being fostered by leading institutions in collaboration with Samsung,” said Hon Pak, Vice President and Head of the Digital Health Team, MX Business at Samsung Electronics. “In addition to our own deep investments in health research, we are sourcing exemplary, talented industry leaders to collaborate with. We are excited to be working with prestigious institutions to explore new health technologies and novel perspectives on wellness.”

Discovering Deeper Sleep With the MIT Media Lab

In collaboration with the MIT Media Lab, Samsung aims to explore new digital profiles for monitoring and improving sleep.

“There’s an ever-growing understanding of how poor sleep negatively impacts both individuals and society at large. Wearable sleep tracking solutions may provide many potential offerings to improve our sleep in the future,” said the MIT Media Lab Professor Pattie Maes, who is also a principal investigator on the collaboration. “We want to go beyond what is currently possible — to investigate more unique sleep profiles, to better personalize sleep interventions for users, and to explore better models for sleep regularity, homeostasis and circadian rhythm.”

Quantifying Resilience and Frailty With Brigham & Women’s Hospital

By examining Galaxy Watch biometric data, Samsung will work with Brigham & Women’s Hospital to explore how clarifying the twin concepts of resilience and frailty can build more effective, personalized pictures of individuals’ health.

“Through our work with Samsung, we are exploring how to put concepts like resilience and frailty into quantifiable terms and investigate how seemingly disparate physiologic systems affect each other,” said Dr. Bruce Levy, Interim Chair, Department of Medicine and Chief, Division of Pulmonary and Critical Care Medicine at Brigham & Women’s Hospital. “We aim to give people actionable insights to maximize their resilience from a stressor, leveraging wearable sensors technology, which offers a unique opportunity to map individual trajectories of recovery or deterioration.”

Confronting Cardiovascular Disease With Tulane University School of Medicine

In partnership with Tulane University School of Medicine, Samsung will utilize the Galaxy Watch’s BioActive sensor to monitor a range of cardiovascular disease indicators.

“Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of death worldwide,” said Dr. Nassir Marrouche, principal investigator of the study and Director of the Tulane Research Innovation for Arrhythmia Discovery at Tulane University School of Medicine. “By combining our extensive expertise in cardiovascular disease, Samsung’s BioActive sensor technology and data-driven machine learning approaches, we aim to unlock a significant, latent body of data to help better predict who’s at risk for hospitalization, get them treatment faster and ultimately improve health outcomes.”

New, Multi-Domain Approaches With the Samsung Medical Center

Working closely with the Samsung Medical Center, Samsung is researching multi-domain healthcare with the aim of developing an integrated analysis data platform and advanced algorithms for abnormal symptom notification.

“This new collaboration will study new methods and systems spanning heart health, sleep and mindfulness utilizing personalized dashboards and dynamic, multi-domain platforms,” said Seung Woo Park, President and CEO, Samsung Medical Center. “Leveraging both Samsung’s comprehensive services and wide operational capacity and Samsung Medical Center’s expertise and clinical research facilities, the partnership aims to develop an algorithm and build a platform to better monitor and give insights on users’ heart health, sleep, mental health and more.”

Through these efforts, Samsung hopes to discover new possibilities for wearables in digital health and deliver diverse and enhanced health services for users and beyond. Samsung will present more details about the Open Innovation Initiative, its expansive health and wellbeing ecosystem and more as part of SDC23.

About Brigham & Women’s Hospital

Brigham and Women’s Hospital is a founding member of Mass General Brigham and a teaching affiliate of Harvard Medical School. With nearly 1,000 inpatient beds, approximately 50,000 inpatient stays, and over 2.6 million outpatient encounters annually, clinicians across the Brigham provide compassionate, high-quality care in virtually every medical and surgical specialty to patients locally, regionally, nationally and around the world. An international leader in basic, clinical and translational research, Brigham and Women’s Hospital has nearly 5,000 scientists, including physician-investigators, renowned biomedical researchers and faculty supported by nearly $750 million in funding. The Brigham’s medical preeminence and service to the community dates to 1832, with the opening of the Boston Lying In, one of the nation’s first maternity hospitals designed to care for women unable to afford in-home medical care. Its merger with the Free Hospital for Women resulted in the Boston Hospital for Women in 1966. In 1980, the Boston Hospital for Women, the Peter Bent Brigham Hospital and the Robert Breck Brigham Hospital officially merged to become Brigham and Women’s Hospital. With nearly 21,000 employees across the Brigham family — including the Brigham and Women’s Physicians Organization and Brigham and Women’s Faulkner Hospital — that rich history is the foundation for our commitment to providing superb care for some of the most complex cases, pursuing breakthroughs in biomedical research, training the next generation of health care providers and serving the local and global community.

About Tulane University School of Medicine

Founded in 1834 to lead the advancement of science and the treatment of disease, Tulane University School of Medicine continues that mission today. Tulane aims to be a distinctive, preeminent research-intensive medical school, transforming health through discovery, lifelong learning and patient-centered health care.

About Samsung Medical Center

Samsung Medical Center (SMC) is one of Korea’s most renowned hospitals committed to excellence in providing the highest quality, compassionate care and service to patients. SMC is leading the new digital & personalized hospital culture in Korea by being the innovative provider of high-tech medical services and providing patient-oriented medical services in the genuine sense. Please visit the www.samsunghospital.com.

Samsung Electronics today announced that the Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification (IHRN) feature¹ of the Samsung Health Monitor app² has received FDA clearance. Together with the app’s existing on-demand Electrocardiogram (ECG) function,³ the IHRN feature proactively monitors heart rhythms suggestive of atrial fibrillation (AFib), right from their wrist.

“We’re excited to announce that Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification, designed to help millions of people around the world who may not be aware of a potential heart risk, has been cleared by the FDA,” said Hon Pak, Vice President and Head of the Digital Health Team, MX Business at Samsung Electronics. “This is yet another example of how Samsung prioritizes proactive safety solutions and enables users to receive a more holistic understanding of their cardiovascular and overall health.”

Cardiovascular disease remains one of the world’s leading causes of death and AFib — a type of arrhythmia — is widely considered a warning sign for major cardiovascular issues that can increase the risk of stroke, heart failure and other cardiovascular complications. Moreover, some of AFib cases are asymptomatic or even silent, leaving people unaware of their risk.

That’s why Galaxy Watch offers tools to help users better understand their heart health using the Samsung BioActive Sensor, including on-demand ECG recording and HR Alert function⁴ that detects abnormally high or low heart rates. The addition of the new IHRN feature enables Galaxy Watch users to monitor another aspect of their health.

Once activated in the Samsung Health Monitor app, the feature will check for irregular heart rhythms in the background via Galaxy Watch’s BioActive Sensor. If a certain number of consecutive measurements are irregular, Galaxy Watch warns the user of potential AFib activity, prompting them to take an ECG using their watch for a more accurate measurement.

The Irregular Heart Rhythm Notification feature will be available as part of the newly announced One UI 5 Watch, coming first to the upcoming Galaxy Watch devices later this year and later expanding to previous editions.

¹ The IHRN feature is not intended to provide a notification on every episode of irregular rhythm suggestive of AFib and the absence of a notification is not intended to indicate no disease process is present. It is not intended for users with other known arrhythmias or users under 22 years old.
² Due to market restrictions in obtaining approval/registration as a Software as a Medical Device (SaMD), it only works on watches and smartphones purchased in the markets where service is currently available (however, service may be restricted when users travel to non-service countries).
³ The ECG app is only available in select markets. The ECG app is not intended to replace traditional methods of diagnosis or treatment. The ECG app is not intended for users with known arrhythmias other than AFib or users under 22 years old. Users should not interpret or take clinical action based on the device output without consultation of a qualified healthcare professional.
⁴ The HR Alert function is for general health and wellness purposes and is not intended for use in the diagnosis of disease or other conditions, or in the cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of disease.
⁵ Availability may vary by market, carrier, model or a paired smartphone. Available on Galaxy Watch4 series and later models.

There’s a reason we sleep for approximately a third of our lives — sleep enables our bodies and minds to recover, and a lack of it reduces our ability to perform well and think clearly. Yet for many, achieving good sleep is a challenge that has only gotten worse over the past few years. That’s why Samsung is bringing sleep to the forefront by recognizing that quality sleep is foundational to our holistic health and drawing attention to the importance of healthy sleeping habits worldwide.

Samsung wants to help people optimize their nights like they do their days through innovative technologies like Galaxy Watch5 series. As sleep monitoring emerges as a health trend, already approximately 50% of Galaxy Watch users track their sleep patterns at least once a week, with 40% of them doing so more than three times a week.¹ This helps build good habits, since once you better understand your sleep patterns, it becomes easier to improve and maintain them, leading to a healthier night’s sleep.

To celebrate World Sleep Day on March 17, as well as Sleep Awareness Week^® by the National Sleep Foundation, Samsung is sharing useful tips for achieving a good night’s sleep.²

Understand Your Sleep Pattern To Build Better Habits

As everyone’s sleep pattern is different, it’s important to learn what’s unique about yours, and Samsung has made tracking and understanding that easy. Take Galaxy Watch’s BioActive Sensor. It monitors your unique sleeping patterns — whether you are awake, when you achieve deep sleep and your blood oxygen level, for example — and presents the results to you the next morning in the Samsung Health app in a user-friendly, easy-to-understand way.

But tracking isn’t enough by itself — establishing good habits is equally important, and Samsung makes it easy with Sleep Coaching. It uses a personally tailored month-long program that tracks your sleep pattern over seven days and then assigns one of eight sleep symbol animals to represent it. Sleep Coaching then sets you on a path to set healthy habits and routines to help you achieve a good night’s sleep more consistently. It keeps track of your daily activities and then gives tips and guidance to better manage them, from exercise and nutrition to mindfulness and health monitoring.

Create a Sleep-Friendly Environment

Even our sleep environment matters, and seemingly small things like screen light or room temperature can impact our sleep. Reduce distractions from your mobile devices by automatically syncing Sleep Mode between your Galaxy smartphone and Watch to mute notifications and change the phone background to grayscale. It also turns off Always On Display and ensures your Galaxy Watch will not activate when you touch the display or move your wrist.

And when it comes to connected home devices, SmartThings lets you control a wide range of smart home products manufactured by both Samsung and partners. Galaxy Watch can also track when you fall asleep each night and automatically close bedroom blinds or turn off lights and the air conditioner.

With a better understanding of your sleep patterns, you can set positive habits to achieve better sleep and make a positive impact on your overall wellness. Samsung is committed to continue enhancing our unique health experiences with solutions centered in sleep. Ongoing strategic partnerships with industry leaders, including the National Sleep Foundation, will continue to deliver on Samsung’s holistic sleep vision, offering even more intuitive and actionable insights to help everyone achieve their wellness goals.

To learn more about the Galaxy Watch5 and Galaxy Watch5 Pro please visit:

Galaxy Watch5: www.samsung.com/galaxy-watch5
Galaxy Watch5 Pro: www.samsung.com/galaxy-watch5-pro

¹ Based on Samsung Health weekly active users with Galaxy Watch4 and Galaxy Watch5.
² Availability may vary depending on market, model and the paired smartphone.

Next week, Samsung will share its latest lineup of innovative products designed to enhance users’ everyday lives, including updates that empower fitness and wellness routines. Ahead of the unveiling, we’d like to take the time to reflect our philosophy, achievements and progress that we have made as we approach our most recent step in our health journey.

The world has entered a new era of wellness, seeing a growing desire for a more nuanced understanding of overall health. In the past, health was a simple concept with a single definition. Now, everyone defines health and wellness by what it means to them. To accommodate everyone’s health goals, Samsung is committed to ensuring everyone has access to the resources they need, so they can work towards the best version of themselves.

To that end, we are focused on setting new standards for health experiences through our Galaxy Watch series and across our broader product portfolio. We have established three key pillars to help people reach their own goals: sensor innovation, connected wellness and industry collaboration.

Advanced Sensors for More Meaningful Insights

To create healthier habits and reach goals, it’s important we know ourselves better. For our users, this journey starts with Samsung’s groundbreaking BioActive Sensor. The BioActive Sensor delivers accurate and comprehensive health data and provides actionable insights and guidance users can leverage during their health and wellness journey.

First introduced with the Galaxy Watch4, the BioActive Sensor uses a unique single chip that combines three powerful health sensors — Optical Heart Rate (PPG), Electrical Heart Signal (ECG) and Bioelectrical Impedance Analysis (BIA) — into one compact unit. Its streamlined design enhances performance and fits comfortably for increased accuracy and 24/7 usage. This helps users deepen their understanding, encourages action and strengthens good habits to help them achieve their goals.

Our sensor provides insights across all aspects of health, but we’d like to highlight two key areas: sleep and body composition. Sleep is often an afterthought when establishing a solid wellness routine, but it is essential for holistic health. At Samsung, we’re serious about helping our community get better sleep. We’ve introduced various sleep quality tracking tools and launched a tailored sleep coaching program all aimed to help users get a more restful night’s sleep.

When it comes to fitness, in particular, everyone’s goals are different. That’s why BioActive Sensor also measures body composition, which deepens users’ knowledge of their physical health, far beyond merely losing weight. The sensor sends microcurrents to measure weight maintained, skeletal muscle gained, body fat lost and body water levels, relative to goals set, helping users hit targets and keep track of what matters to them.

Across these advancements, we remain intensely committed to the secure and private collection of data to give our users peace of mind during their wellness journeys. All health data is encrypted and secured on the device itself and guarded by Knox, ensuring users’ information remains isolated from unauthorized sources.

Wellness That Spans All Devices

We are also providing tools that allow consumers to track overall health and wellness — whether they’re at home, in the gym, or on the road. The Samsung Health app, with more than 200 million active global users, is at the center of Samsung’s health experience across an extensive range of devices, from smartwatches to smartphones to tablets and even TVs. The app — a holistic health hub that consolidates fitness, wellness and health monitoring capabilities — records and compiles all kinds of health data and activity information, presents them intuitively and gives guidance on how to leverage that data to maximize results. The collected information is comprehensive, easy-to-understand and encourages positive action.

More connected devices mean a more seamless and enhanced user experience. While following guided workout or meditation programs on Samsung Smart TVs or Galaxy Tabs at home, for example, your calorie count and heart rate are tracked on your Galaxy Watch but viewed on the larger screen for easier access. Your Galaxy Watch also recognizes when you fall asleep and automatically dims lights and turns off air conditioners in response.

Open Collaboration Means Better Health Experiences

To give our users the best experience possible, we partner with other leaders in technology and wellness. We have built a strong foundation with our technology, and we welcome collaboration on our open ecosystem — one that often serves as an incubator for exciting new applications, services and features. In collaboration with Google, we co-developed Wear OS and Health Connect so that more users can join the unified platform and take advantage of new services and solutions to meet everyone’s needs.

Samsung works extensively with third-party experts, research centers and universities to further advance wearable tracking and insight capabilities, including the National Sleep Foundation for sleep, the University of California San Diego Sleep Laboratory and the University of California, San Francisco Hypoxia Research Laboratory for sleep and blood oxygen research and Louisiana State University, Pennington Biomedical Research Center and the University of Hawaii Cancer Center for BIA research, to name a few. We’re also committed to researching new ways our health solutions can be used in the medical field. In the coming months, we’re focused on developing more tools and resources that will support the medical community and give our users a more holistic view of their health records.

The Promising Future of Health and Wellness

In the last few years, many people around the world have adopted new habits and interests. For many, these include a greater awareness of physical, mental and sleep health. To meet this demand, Samsung is excited to continue expanding our Galaxy Watch lineup to better cater to the many unique needs of our users — especially those with a passion for the outdoors.

Our work, however, does not stop there. We are constantly innovating and investing in research and development and exploring new ways to work with our trusted partners. Through open collaboration and focused innovation, we will ensure our users are equipped with advanced technologies that empower them to better understand their own minds and bodies for a truly integrated, holistic experience of health and wellness.

We can’t wait for you to see what’s next. Please be sure to tune in to Galaxy Unpacked on August 10 at 6:30pm IST on Samsung Newsroom India.

by TaeJong Jay Yang

EVP and Head of Health R&D Team at Mobile eXperience Business, Samsung Electronics