Where to start
If you have a number in front of you, start with the guide to your resting heart rate or the one on heart rate variability. If your question is about nights, read the sleep guide. If it is about weight, start with the healthy weight page and the waist measurement page, which give measurements in stones, pounds, inches and centimetres. If your question is about a bad back, read the guide to back pain and sitting. If you are thinking about a parent or about your own balance, read the falls guide.
Each page links onward to the others, and each ends with the signs that mean you should speak to a health professional.
Written for the UK, not translated
These pages are not copies of the American guides. They start from British sources such as the NHS website, NICE guidance, the British Heart Foundation and the UK Chief Medical Officers, they use British spelling and units, and they give British numbers for urgent help: 999 in an emergency and NHS 111 for urgent advice that is not an emergency.
Where a British source says nothing on a question, the guide says so instead of filling the gap with a figure from somewhere else.
What a wellness device can and cannot do
A wellness band, scale or cushion gives you estimates for following your own trends at home. It does not diagnose, treat or prevent a condition, and it does not replace a GP, a pharmacist or a physiotherapist. The guides are careful to separate what a device estimates from what a clinic measures.
Chutex products described in these pages are wellness products, not medical devices. Elder is personal protective equipment that cushions the impact of a detected fall, and it does not prevent falls.
How to read a number from a tracker
Start with the question behind the number, check how it was measured, and look at the direction over weeks instead of a single day. A reading that worries you, or comes with symptoms, is a reason to speak to your GP or call NHS 111, not a reason to wait for the next night's data.
Brands compute scores with formulas they choose, so a score on one app is not comparable with a score on another. What carries over is your own baseline and how it moves.
How the pages are sourced
Every figure carries a numbered source with the date it was read, and a figure without a source is left out. Where two British sources differ, the guide shows both and says which is which. Health topics carry the line “Medical review in progress.” until a qualified reviewer has checked the page, and the pages never name a reviewer before a review has taken place.
Prices of products are shown only on the product pages and in the bridge boxes, in pounds including VAT. Nothing in these guides suggests that the NHS or an insurer pays for a Chutex product.
All guides in this topic
Normal resting heart rate: what the BHF and NHS say, and how to check yours
The usual adult range, how to count your pulse, and which signs mean you should get advice.
Heart rate variability (HRV): what it is, what moves it and how to read a band
The gap between heartbeats, what shifts it, and what a wearable can honestly tell you.
How much sleep do you need? What the NHS says by age, and how to tell if you are short
Hours by age from the NHS, a way to check your own night, and the habits and signs worth acting on.
BMI and healthy weight: NHS categories, stones and pounds, and the limits of the number
How the NHS works out BMI, what the categories mean in stones and pounds, and where the number falls short.
How to measure your waist: the NHS and BHF method, waist to height ratio and when to see a GP
Where to put the tape, how to turn the number into a ratio, and what the ratio means.
Back pain from sitting: NHS, Arthritis UK and HSE advice on posture, breaks and warning signs
Desk set-up, breaks, staying active, and the symptoms that mean you should not wait.
Falls prevention for older adults: what the NHS, NICE and Age UK advise
Risk factors, balance exercises, home changes and when to get help.
UK strength training guidelines: how much muscle-strengthening do adults need?
Days, sets, reps and safety, as the UK health bodies set them out.
Words you will meet on these pages
- Resting heart rate
- Your heart rate when you are calm and still, counted in beats per minute.
- Heart rate variability (HRV)
- The variation in time between heartbeats.
- BMI
- Body mass index, a ratio of weight to height used as a screening measure.
- Waist circumference
- The distance around your waist, measured with a tape.
- GP
- Your general practitioner, the family doctor in the NHS.
- NHS 111
- The NHS service for urgent advice that is not a 999 emergency.
Frequently asked questions
Are these guides medical advice?
No. They explain public information from the NHS and other institutions and describe what consumer devices estimate. Speak to your GP about symptoms or concerns.
Are the figures American?
No. These pages use British sources, British spelling and units such as stones and pounds. Where a British source gives no figure, the guide says so.
When should I call 999 or NHS 111?
Call 999 in a medical emergency. Call NHS 111 for urgent advice that is not an emergency. Each guide lists the warning signs its sources name.
Is Elder a medical alarm?
No. Elder is personal protective equipment that cushions the impact of a detected fall. It does not prevent falls and it does not call for help.