A study suggests that smartwatches could be used to help people quit smoking.
Researchers have developed pioneering motion sensor software that can detect the typical hand movements that occur when someone holds a cigarette.
When cigarette smoking is detected, an alert appears on the smartwatch screen. An app on the device sends a vibration with a text message designed by smokers and ex-smokers, offering support to quit smoking.
One message says “Quitting smoking allows you to breathe easier… Quitting smoking is good,” while others contain a count of how many cigarettes were smoked and the total number of puffs taken that day.
The researchers, from the University of Bristol, believe their app is the first just-in-time intervention to prevent smoking relapse that runs entirely on a smartwatch and does not need to be paired with a smartphone.
Chris Stone, from the tobacco and alcohol research group at the University of Bristol, said an initial lapse was a vulnerable time for people trying to quit and risked leading to a full relapse into smoking.
“People like smart watches. They like the idea of it sending a message the moment they smoke.
“Therefore, if we can identify this point of failure and deliver an intervention precisely at that point, we have the opportunity to improve the success of the quit attempt.”
Stone added: “Our goal is to harness the latest thinking in intervention design and deliver it in a convenient, portable package with minimal burden on the user and maximum engagement with behavior change; and in doing so, make a difference in people’s lives.”
In the study, published in the journal JMIR Formative Research, the smartwatch app was tested on 18 people interested in quitting smoking. The participants were between 18 and 70 years old and smoked more than 10 cigarettes a day with their right hand.
They wore a TicWatch loaded with the app for two weeks, before completing a questionnaire consisting of 27 questions.
In total, 66% of participants said it was acceptable to use the smartwatch with the motion sensor software, while 61% said the content of the messages was relevant to them.
Positive comments included people reporting that the app raised awareness about smoking, made them feel positive about quitting, made them stop and think, helped them smoke less, and provided constant encouragement.
However, negative responses were that repeated messages lost their effectiveness, some messages did not appear quickly enough, there was not enough variety of messages, and some were too vague.
The next step is a longer-term effectiveness test, which could use a wider variety of messages, the researchers said.
Alizée Froguel, head of prevention policy at Cancer Research UK, said: “This study shows that smartwatches could be a useful method to help people quit smoking, but more research is needed to understand their effectiveness.
“There are many tools available to help people stop smoking, and getting support from your local free smoking cessation service will give you the best chance of successfully quitting.”