Hilo Core is a new, wearable wristband that helps people monitor their blood pressure trends over time. The product comes with an FDA-cleared arm cuff to provide clinically accurate insights into the user’s blood pressure patterns.

People with high blood pressure and those at risk of developing it can use the wearable to continuously track their blood pressure, which may give them and their healthcare providers a better picture of their vascular health.

How the Hilo Wristband Tracks Blood Pressure

The American Heart Association recommends that everyone with hypertension measure their blood pressure at home. This is commonly done with a blood pressure cuff that inflates around your arm to block blood flow. As it slowly deflates, it measures the pressure of the blood pumping against your arteries.

Hilo Core still features a blood pressure cuff, but it also comes with a wearable band outfitted with a sensor and an app to track your measurements. Users take blood pressure measurements with the cuff for the first four days. After that, you need to use the cuff only about once a month to recalibrate the device. The rest of the time, Hilo uses light sensors to estimate blood pressure. It provides up to 35 daily blood pressure measurements across the day and night. In addition to blood pressure, Hilo tracks your sleep, steps, and heart rate. The data is intended to help you understand your blood pressure trends and patterns. 

The arm cuff can also be used for occasional calibrations afterward. While the cuff is FDA-cleared, the Hilo band is considered a wellness product rather than a “medical device,” meaning it’s not proven to diagnose or treat blood pressure, said Jordana Cohen, MD, MSCE, a hypertension specialist and associate professor of medicine and epidemiology at the University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine.

“I think it’ll be a long time before we’re actually ready to act on these readings. But it will be really cool to see the future of this and know how we can use them,” Cohen said.

Hilo has also emphasized that only the cuffed device can provide clinically accurate measurements right now.

“This is not really about biohackers, and I would probably not recommend our product if you just want to find out if you have high blood pressure. I think it makes sense if you know you have it and you want to manage it,” Stefan Petzinger, chief executive officer at Hilo by Aktiia, told Verywell at the Hilo U.S. launch preview.

Hilo Core is currently listed at $239.98 for the cuff, band, and 12-month Hilo subscription, which gives you full access to your data in the app. 

Related Stories

What Causes Fluctuating Blood Pressure?

7 Reasons Monitoring Your Blood Pressure Regularly Matters More Than You Think

Active Hilo Use Linked to Reduced Blood Pressure

It’s not always easy to tell whether lifestyle changes have improved your blood pressure, especially if you only measure it at your checkups. That’s where wearables can come into play. Studies have shown that wearing a smartwatch that tracks blood pressure leads to lower blood pressure readings, in part due to increased awareness.

Wearable readings can help remind you to exercise more, eat a lower-salt diet, and take your medications, Cohen said.

Many of Hilo’s European users have experienced the “Hilo effect,” a pattern in which their blood pressure improves over time. A study of 30,092 Hilo Core users in Europe showed that people who engaged more frequently with the Hilo app saw a reduction in systolic blood pressure of about 8 mmHg over six months.

Petzinger said the device itself is not causing the drop, but seeing the data makes people more “blood pressure aware” and empowers them to make better choices.

How Should You Use Wearables to Manage Blood Pressure?

Hilo Core may help users identify patterns in how factors like sleep, stress, and diet affect their blood pressure.

“If certain patterns emerge, for example, higher readings after poor sleep, increased stress, excessive sodium intake, alcohol consumption, or missed medications, those observations can guide meaningful lifestyle modifications. Before self-diagnosing or making changes to a treatment plan, patients should share these trends with their healthcare provider rather than adjusting medications on their own,” Syed Ahsan, MD, a vascular medicine specialist at the Henry Ford Health in Detroit, Michigan, told Verywell in an email.

Hilo users can generate a report of their data in the app to share with their healthcare provider, though there are debates about the current usefulness of this data.

More data is not always better if it leads to anxiety or compulsive app-checking, especially since blood pressure naturally fluctuates throughout the day and isolated elevations are often not clinically significant, Ahsan said.

“Importantly, wearable devices should complement, not replace, validated upper-arm blood pressure cuffs and regular medical care,” Ahsan added.

Disclaimer: We were invited to attend the Hilo U.S. launch preview in NYC and were gifted the Hilo Core.