How heart rate and sleep data from Fitbits can help predict flu outbreaks

The World Health Organization estimates that as many as 6,50,000 people worldwide die of respiratory diseases linked to seasonal flu each year

The Fitbit on your wrist not only counts your steps and minutes of sleep, it can also help tell if you’re coming down with the flu — and warn health authorities to get ready to help.

A study in the United States has found that heart rate and sleep data from wearable fitness tracker watches can predict and alert public health officials to real-time outbreaks of flu more accurately than current surveillance methods.

The study used data from more than 47,000 Fitbit users in five US states. The results, published in The Lancet Digital Health journal, showed that by using Fitbit data,