Pulse monitoring offers insights into health by measuring heartbeats per minute, directly reflecting heart activity. This accessible indicator can be checked at home, providing a foundational understanding of your body’s rhythms and cardiovascular function.
Understanding Your Pulse
Your pulse is the rhythmic expansion and contraction of arteries as blood is pushed through them with each heartbeat. This wave, generated by the heart’s left ventricle, can be felt where an artery lies close to the skin. It directly measures your heart rate, indicating beats per minute.
Monitoring your pulse provides insights into heart function and fitness. Consistent measurement signals how efficiently your heart circulates blood and delivers oxygen. Tracking your pulse can also reveal potential underlying health conditions, prompting timely attention if irregularities are detected. This practice helps you understand your body’s responses to daily activities, stress, and sleep.
How Pulse is Measured
Manually checking your pulse is a straightforward method performed at several body locations. Common sites are the radial artery at the wrist and the carotid artery on the neck. To take your radial pulse, place your index and middle fingers on the underside of your opposite wrist, between the wrist bone and thumb-side tendon. Apply gentle pressure until you feel a beat.
For the carotid pulse, place fingers gently in the soft groove on one side of your neck, next to your windpipe, avoiding pressing too hard or on both sides simultaneously. Count beats for 60 seconds, or for 15 seconds and multiply by four to get bpm.
Beyond manual palpation, devices offer pulse measurement. Smartwatches and fitness trackers use photoplethysmography (PPG) sensors, which shine light through the skin and detect changes in light absorption as blood volume fluctuates with each heartbeat. Software then converts these light intensity changes into a pulse rate. Some smartwatches also incorporate electrodes to measure the heart’s electrical activity.
Pulse oximeters, typically clipping onto a finger, use red and infrared light to measure changes in light absorption in oxygenated and deoxygenated blood. While primarily estimating blood oxygen levels, they also display your pulse rate. This method provides oxygen saturation and heart rate readings.
What Your Pulse Numbers Mean
A normal resting heart rate for adults typically ranges from 60 to 100 beats per minute (bpm). This range can vary based on age, fitness level, and certain medications. Well-trained athletes often have a lower resting heart rate (40-60 bpm) due to increased heart efficiency.
Children’s resting heart rates are generally higher than adults and decrease with age. For newborns (0-1 month), the range can be 70-190 bpm; for children aged 1-2 years, 80-130 bpm. By ages 10-15, the normal range typically aligns with adults (60-100 bpm).
Various factors can influence your heart rate. Physical activity, stress, anxiety, and body temperature changes can temporarily increase it. Dehydration can also elevate pulse. Certain medications, such as beta-blockers, can lower heart rate, while others might increase it.
Bradycardia is a heart rate generally below 60 bpm. While normal for athletes or during sleep, a consistently slow pulse with symptoms may indicate an underlying issue. Tachycardia describes a heart rate typically over 100 bpm. This can be a normal response to exercise or fever, but an abnormally fast resting rate may warrant medical evaluation.
When to Consult a Doctor
While pulse monitoring is a valuable tool for personal health awareness, it is not a substitute for medical advice. Consult a doctor if your resting pulse consistently falls outside the normal range (above 100 bpm or below 60 bpm), unless you are a trained athlete.
Seeking medical attention is also advisable if changes in your pulse are accompanied by other symptoms. These include shortness of breath, dizziness, lightheadedness, chest pain or discomfort, or fainting spells. An irregular heart rhythm, where your pulse feels erratic or like your heart is skipping beats, should also be discussed with a healthcare provider. These symptoms, in combination with an abnormal pulse, can indicate potential underlying health conditions that require diagnosis and appropriate care.