Apple Watch feature saves woman from near-fatal carbon monoxide poisoning: I was 'extremely scared'
An Apple Watch safety feature is being credited with helping save a woman's life after she was exposed to near-fatal levels of carbon monoxide.
Wilmington University graduate student Natalie Nasatka began experiencing symptoms of carbon monoxide poisoning last week in her apartment.
"When I woke up and had breakfast, I was feeling still exhausted, and so I decided to cancel personal training and take a nap," she told "Fox & Friends" Friday.
After her nap, Nasatka still reported feeling tired, dizzy and weak.
"Even walking up the stairs, I was dizzy, disoriented, had absolutely no energy. I pulled myself upstairs and flopped into bed, and I had absolutely no energy for anything. As I was feeling myself sort of like drift away, all of a sudden I got extremely scared, and I was like, this is not good," she told host Steve Doocy.
Carbon monoxide is an odorless, tasteless and colorless gas made when burning fuels such as propane or wood. Poisoning happens when the gas occurs at extreme levels in the air and builds up in the blood.
The deadly gas claims the lives of over 400 people each year and prompts roughly 100,000 emergency room visits and more than 14,000 hospitalizations, according to the CDC.
An Apple Watch Ultra 2 smartwatch at the companys Grand Central store in New York, US, on Wednesday, Dec. 20, 2023. Photographer: Jeenah Moon/Bloomberg via Getty Images
"I held down the button. And I was connected to 911. And I took a stab in the dark and I said, this is possibly CO poisoning."
The built-in Apple Watch feature allows users to automatically call local law enforcement and even share their location in emergency situations.
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Users simply press and hold the side button for five seconds until a menu appears. From there, watch wearers can either select the "Emergency SOS" option or continue holding the button to start a countdown. The countdown will prompt the watch to call emergency services.
Emergency services, including the fire department, arrived on the scene to help Nasatka, who had lost consciousness. She was taken to the emergency room where she was kept for 24 hours before being released.
According to the fire department, the carbon monoxide levels in her apartment were dangerously high at 80 parts per million, and her blood was 33% carbon monoxide.
Nasatka, who shared she did not have a carbon monoxide detector in the apartment, believes a faulty heater could be behind the leak.
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Since the incident, management has fixed Nasatka's heater and a carbon monoxide detector was installed.
"If I didn't have the Apple Watch, I probably would have just fallen asleep because the phone was downstairs," she said.