Oura ring is feeding us lies! The statement may come as a shock, but with time, Oura ring’s side effects are surfacing on discussion forums that pose a serious concern. Claimed as a revolutionary health tracker, it was quite surprising for me when my colleague told me that he had been feeling vertigo ever since he started wearing Oura ring.
Although being an Oura user myself, I haven’t had any such symptoms other than a simple rash, but what do I know? I just bought it a few months ago. But, this led me to look for any long-term side effects it has. So, after thorough research, my colleagues and my personal experience, I learned about it.
Side Effects of the Famous Oura Ring!
With so much health data roaming around in the Oura app, it is sometimes too hard to understand what is beneficial for me and what is purely trash.
Believe me when I say it is better to stay unaware until you get guidance and gather enough data that you know what it works for. Wondering why? Here it is:
1. Nocebo Effect – Psychological Disturbances
Some of you might wonder what this term means. Let me tell you, the Nocebo effect means having negative expectations of something, or you can say the exact opposite of Placebo. While the Oura ring is said to be a revolutionary health-tracking device, it throws out some bad data every day, where you need to filter out what is worth reacting to and what is not.
Okay, let’s understand with an example: You won’t even be aware of the many real-life situations that will naturally raise your heart rate until you have a tracker that notifies you of everything quite frequently. Correct?
Let’s say that your heart rate will rise when you are feeling excited about a surprise gift, tense about a meeting, or going shopping. You won’t even notice this because these conditions are far too small for you to be aware of. However, having a gadget or tracker that notifies you and allows you to see it every time it occurs can undoubtedly cause more harm than benefit.
People getting obsessed with the perfect health score and checking every other minute whether they are doing okay or not has led to the Nocebo effect that is harming the psyche of people with disturbed mindsets.
2. EMF Rays
Another side effect of the Oura ring is the EMF radiation it is emitting, which poses a danger that isn’t visible to us. Most users take it lightly since they are using their phones, gadgets, and other things.
But I can’t! I hear danger when I hear EMF rays!
So, while researching about it, I stumbled upon a very useful video where the YouTuber tested the EMF Radiation Levels and showed the live results.
Trust me, it opened my eyes to the delusional world I was living in. These EMF rays are so much more harmful to us than we can ever imagine. In the video, whenever he synced Oura ring to the app, it emitted radiations of dangerous levels, up to 3000 or more. However, when he turned the Airplane mode on, the level suddenly dropped.
3. Vertigo
When my colleague told me about his vertigo (dizziness) condition, I asked him if he wore the Oura ring all day. Wearing the ring 24/7 has its perks and lows.
Although it comes with a benefit that allows you to track your health data, it also emits EMF rays (with SAR 0.0003 W/kg), much similar to smartphones due to its Bluetooth connectivity, which can lead to headaches, nausea, fatigue, anxiety, and even depression because of continuous exposure!
When I asked him to take off the ring for a day, surprisingly, he felt improvement. So, we tested wearing and not wearing to see if there was a connection.
Much to my surprise, wearing the ring continuously had some negative effects. Although it seemed that way, there’s no scientific explanation for vertigo yet.
4. Health-Related Anxiety and Depression
The Health tech hedge fund industry is currently working on manipulative marketing, compelling people to buy something they can live without. Because having constant nagging notifications showing poor health is actually leading to health-related anxiety and depression.
So, to avoid such a situation, I talked with my doctor. He confirmed that although the Oura ring is a blessing in disguise, it is doing more harm than good, at least to some of his patients. Let’s understand how.
Suppose a person has a fast heart rhythm and is aware of it. He can feel the palpitations and know the techniques to calm down whenever it happens. But from now on, to track it, he buys the Oura ring.
So, the ring started warning him after he played a game that he would have high heart rates, and he started getting anxious, and then he started getting worse outcomes with his heart rhythms. This is how it works and tracks things because what we do with that information is really problematic.
5. Redness, Skin Rashes & Itchiness
Up until now, the only side effect I had with my Oura ring was a mild rash, but that is not the case with everyone. You can wear the ring all day, but wearing it 24/7 can affect your skin after a while, even if the inner molding of the ring is non-allergenic and non-metallic.
I often find my finger swollen, especially during the night, when I wear the ring while sleeping. However, I had some redness/itchiness, and my colleague didn’t. So, that totally depends upon your skin sensitivity and how it adapts to different wearables.
6. Unchecked Obsession
Sometimes, being able to check your heart rate at any time is reassuring, but from my personal experience, it is quite apprehending to look at your heart rate score more than ten times a day, every time some minor thing is going on, and it displays that your heart rate is not normal which causes more stress.
Lately, I got so obsessed with getting the perfect score that it started getting on my nerves, hampering my sleep schedule.
So I had to make a rule that I wouldn’t check it because it’s so easy to fall into that kind of cycle again and again.
After that, when I compared the history for days when I allowed myself to check my heart rate and the days when I refused to open the app at all until the end of the day, it was shocking how much lower my heart rate was on days when I refused to allow myself to open the app.
7. Numbness
Every now and then, while sleeping, I feel numbness around the finger I wear my Oura ring, so I have to switch it more often. Thankfully, there are no major effects on the stats. Otherwise, it would have been an issue.
8. Proposition 65 Warning
The one thing I was not warned about in the ring was the 65 warning. This is something that is easily disguised by the other extraordinary features Oura claims to provide.
This warning has been mentioned on Oura’s website:
If the Oura itself has mentioned it that this ring contains chemicals like residual lead and nickel known to cause cancer, birth defects, or other reproductive harm, then why are people not talking about it? Is it something that can be easily neglected? I couldn’t, so I searched for it.
After all the hard work and so many sleepless nights, I concluded that the Proposition 65 warning simply indicates the potential presence of chemicals on the list. The ring has batteries made of chemicals, which probably prompted this warning.
This means that the warning doesn’t necessarily mean the Oura Ring is guaranteed to cause harm. It simply indicates the potential presence of chemicals on a watchlist. Phew! But this is something that ought not to be neglected at any cost.
Frequently Asked Questions
Wrap Up
While the Oura ring and its capabilities famish the whole health tech world, I feel that it is overrated. After having the ring for quite some time, I can say that I can gladly survive without the ring.
The threats the ring possesses in the disguise of a shiny fitness material ought not to be neglected.
Be it the EMF rays or the warning related to reproductive health and birth defects, if Oura itself claims the warnings, we shouldn’t depend upon the same for our health-related data.
