FDA warns your smartwatch or ring can't measure your blood sugar, no matter what it claims

If your fancy new smartwatch or ring claims that it can measure your blood glucose levels without piercing your skin, it might be lying to you. Or, at the very least, providing results that shouldn't be used to inform your decisions in terms of medication. That's according to a new FDA safety warning which suggests that such devices might not be quite so smart as they claim.

With smartwatches already hugely popular and smart rings now expected to boom in popularity, there are plenty of eyes on such technology. Oura's smart rings are the best on the market right now and Samsung's Galaxy Ring will be officially unveiled later this year. Apple was also recently tipped to launch its own smart ring sooner or later, and blood glucose monitoring is something that people seem to really need, especially if they're diabetic.

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But knowing how much glucose is in the blood normally means pricking a finger, and that isn't something rings can do for obvious reasons. Non-invasive checks are where technology is going, but the FDA isn't convinced. No smartwatch or ring has been cleared by the FDA to do such a thing, but that doesn't mean that they aren't available. Apple is thought to be trying to make blood glucose monitoring a feature of future Apple Watches, but it hasn't done so to date.

"Sellers of these smartwatches and smart rings claim their devices measure blood glucose levels without requiring people to prick their finger or pierce the skin," the FDS explains. "They claim to use non-invasive techniques. These smartwatches and smart rings do not directly test blood glucose levels."

The issue at hand is that people may be using the information these wearables collect as a way to know whether or not they should take their medicine and at what dose. And an accurate reading is of course vital. The FDA argues that these devices aren't accurate at all, and it's now actively warning people against using them.