If you take cocaine, amphetamines, or other stimulant drugs, you might know that they have an effect on your heart. Odds are that you’ve felt your heart racing and had the passing thought that it probably wasn’t terribly healthy. If you’re cognizant enough to be aware of it, it’s pretty scary when your heart isn’t cooperating like it’s supposed to. How can you tell if you’re in serious danger? One trend that’s emerged along with the popularity of devices like the Fitbit and Apple watch is using the heart rate feature to monitor drug use.
People who use cocaine have higher blood pressure, stiffer arteries and thicker heart muscle walls (meaning greater blood clotting, increased heart stress, and more blood vessel constriction) than people who do not, all of which can lead to a heart attack. According to a study published in Circulation: Journal of the American Heart Association, a cocaine user’s risk of heart attack increases by 24 times in the first hour after the drug is ingested. Users have turned to fitness tracking devices in order to keep track of their heart rate and decide when to stop using, based on how high the number is.
Fitbits are activity trackers that you wear like bracelets. They’re wireless-enabled so that data can be synced or uploaded to other devices, and they measure things like the number of steps you’ve walked, your heart rate, the quality of your sleep, and the number of steps you’ve climbed. Fitbit uses optical heart rate monitoring, called photoplethysmography. As opposed to an ECG (electrocardiogram) that reads electrical activity, an optical heart rate monitor can detect the pulse by shining a light through the skin and measuring changes of light absorption in order to see blood flow.
There are questions about the accuracy of these readings, however, and there was even a class action lawsuit filed against Fitbit claiming that the device significantly misreads heart rate. The lawsuit claims that the readings were off by an average of 24.34 beats per minute (bpm), and an incredible 75 bpm in outlying cases. One probably could very well be that according to the instructions, Fitbit is meant to be worn a couple inches above the wrist for the most accurate results, but many people wear them right at the wrist like they do a bracelet.
The Apple watch also uses photoplethysmography. As Apple describes it, your blood is red because it reflects red light and absorbs green light. The Apple watch uses green LED lights along with light‑sensitive photodiodes (a device that converts light into an electrical current) to detect the amount of blood flowing through your wrist at any moment.
This sounds like a good idea in theory – because anything that can help prevent overdose or drug-related deaths is helpful – but the technology isn’t nearly as accurate as what you’d use in a medical setting. If the number is off and you decide to use more because you haven’t hit a dangerous number yet, you might find yourself having that heart attack you were trying to avoid.
If you or a loved one need help with quitting drugs or alcohol, consider Asana Recovery. We offer medical detox, along with both residential and outpatient programs, and you’ll be supervised by a highly trained staff of medical professionals, counselors, and therapists. Call us any time at (949) 438-4504 to get started.
