Smartwatches could help people give up smoking, researchers at the UK’s Bristol University have found.
The study, funded by Cancer Research UK and part of the Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme (ICEP), tested a smartwatch fitted with a custom app which used in-built motion sensors to detect typical smoking movements on 18 participants who had expressed an interest in giving up.
Over two-thirds of people could benefit
Worn over two weeks by the subjects, the “normal” Android smartwatch loaded with the custom app could work out if the person were smoking. When the app detected smoking behaviour, the smartwatch delivered a “relapse prevention” message, just at the moment it was needed, to help with the wearer’s attempt to quit.
The results of the so-called “just-in-time intervention”, published in JMIR Formative Research, showed the technology has the potential to help over two thirds of trial participants stop the deadly habit.
Smoking is the primary cause of preventable illness and premature death, the researchers note in a press release. It harms nearly every organ of the body and reducing both quality of life and life expectancy. However, quitting is notoriously difficult, and many people try all sorts of ways to stop smoking, with limited success.
Telltale hand movements
The new method picked up on hand movements associated with cigarette smoking and delivered the anti-smoking encouragement, but it also made wearers more aware of the “automatic” side of smoking and “made them think about what they were doing, motivating them to quit”, the authors reported.
Chris Stone, Senior Research Associate in Wearable Technology Application Development in Bristol’s Tobacco and Alcohol Research Group, and Integrative Cancer Epidemiology Programme (ICEP), explained why the approach could be a gamechanger: “For those who are trying to give up, an initial lapse is a vulnerable moment, and risks leading to a full relapse to smoking. People like smartwatches. They like the idea of it delivering a message at the point that they smoke. Therefore, if we can identify this point of lapse, and deliver an intervention precisely at that point, we have an opportunity to improve the success of the quit attempt.”
Minimal burden, maximum engagement
Part of the success of the project is that the intervention comes in “a convenient wearable package with minimal burden to the user and maximum engagement with behaviour change; and in doing so, make(s) a difference to people’s lives,” Stone added.
A longer-term effectiveness trial is now being recommended, with Alizée Froguel, Cancer Research UK’s Prevention Policy Manager, explaining: “Smoking is the biggest cause of cancer in the UK and stopping completely is the best thing you can do for your health. This study shows that smartwatches could be a useful method to help people quit smoking, but more research is needed to understand how effective they are.”
