AirPods dominate the wireless earphone market despite their hefty price tag. However, Apple has plans to take things up a notch and outfit the wearable with heath and fitness-related features in the years to come.

According to a report, the Cupertino giant is reportedly exploring three avenues to transform the AirPods into souped-up health devices. First off, Apple is trying to enhance hearing which would be an expansion of the Conversation Boost and Live Listen features. These features that pinpoint and amplify sound from people talking around you were released in October.

The report cited a specific new FDA regulation that would allow the iPhone manufacturer to market the AirPods as hearing aids. The regulations “permit the sale of a new class of cheaper hearing aids directly to consumers to treat mild to moderate hearing loss.”

The second health-related feature being explored is related to measuring core body temperature from inside the ear. The company is looking to enable this functionality by integrating a skin temperature sensor like the one on the Apple Watch, into the body of an AirPod. It didn’t explicitly disclose how it plans to incorporate such a sensor into the AirPods.

Lastly, the company is looking for a way to monitor posture and ergonomics using AirPods. The report mentioned that the feature would make use of the “motion sensors in the earbuds to alert wearers of slouching and to improve their posture.”

Rumors about the third-generation AirPods have been circulating for a while now. In fact, Apple is expected to launch them at the “Unleashed event scheduled for October 18. The report quells doubts about this saying the above features “aren’t expected by next year.”

What do you think of this? Would it be a laudable innovation or has Apple headed up a blind alley here? Drop a comment and let us know!