An app a day . . .

An app may be able to keep you
out of the doctor's office.

Many people have heard the phrase: "An apple a day keeps the doctor away." But what happens when a smartphone app can do the same thing? As the FDA approves more health related apps for smartphones, health apps are becoming more popular.

The market for health apps has increased significantly as more people purchase smartphones and more apps are created. MedCity News discovered that within the last year, the market increased from $100 million to over $700 million annually. A Business Week article estimates that health apps will be used by 30 percent of smartphone users by 2015.

Harvard Medical identifies blood pressure, CPR, ICE (in case of emergency), and heart rate apps to be increasingly important. Not only do these apps help you stay healthy, but they also allow action to be taken if something does happen. The CPR app teaches you how to perform CPR on someone if needed, and the ICE app allows you to enter relevant health information about yourself and contact information so paramedics can find it if something happens to you.

A new app allows doctors to employ a mobile ultrasound.

One new app used by doctors is an ultrasound app that works when a small device is plugged into it (image of device to the right). An article from Business Week tells a story about how a doctor used this pocket-sized ultrasound when he responded to Joplin, MO after the tornado hit. He "used it to examine a pregnant woman who came to a temporary hospital complaining of stomach pain." The mobility of this item allows for convenience in emergency situations.

Maybe you think that you have no need for a health related app. You have no known health problem, so why should you care? Well, there is more to health than just health problems.  

Japanese programmers created an app to repel mosquitoes. 

One app I found particularly entertaining is called "Mosquito Buster". Japan Trends identifies an app that causes your phone to emit three levels of high frequency sounds in order to drive away mosquitoes, rodents, and (my personal favorite) children. That's right . . . children. As we get older we are said to lose our ability to hear the high pitched sound, so only children will be bothered and will stay away (perfect for the screaming children in the department store).

However, with the increasing creation of health related apps, the FDA has begun to regulate some medical apps as they would any other medical device. As people implement the use of smartphones in the place of regular equipment, they are becoming medical devices, so they must be examined in the same way.

So whether you want to keep track of your blood pressure, have a doctor give you an ultrasound with their smartphone, or just want to relax away from mosquitoes (or your/someone else's children) smartphone apps are increasing in the health field. What once was done with large devices can be done with a device that fits in the palm of your hand, making mobility and convenience a possibility for health.

Networked

Facebook has become a popular app for smartphones.

Smartphones have become more and more popular in recent years. As that happens, more apps come out that allow you to update others on your life whenever you feel the need. However, having the ability to upload thoughts and pictures at whim can have both positive and negative affects on your life.

Twitter and Facebook both have mobile apps that allow users to update their profiles from wherever they find themselves; whether this is in class, at work, or maybe even on a date. Recent statistics show that 59% of smartphone users have used their phone in order to access a social networking app.

Twitter has become a
popular app among young
users. 

Although all of these options allow us to stay connected to our friends and family, the apps on smartphones also pose some risks. When information, pictures, and videos can be uploaded from a phone, anyone can post something with ease that they might regret later. Facebook and Twitter are two common ways for people to update their profile. In 2010, 40% of tweets came from a mobile phone, with the number likely rising due to advances in technology.

Statistics from 2011 show that about one fourth of smartphone owners are under the age of 24. As many people many know, people in high school and college do not always make the most responsible decisions. Pictures taken at a party or a bar could be uploaded not only by the people in the picture, but also by anyone with them who has a smartphone. This could cause a loss of privacy, as well as embarrassment, as pictures that were not meant to be seen by others are suddenly broadcast to everyone on a friends or followers list.


A quote from a recent article on CNN says it best: "Not everyone is cut out to use social media . . . Some people just don't know how to handle themselves in public."

Not only have apps such as Twitter and Facebook become popular, but companies are also creating phones that take advantage of the users need to constantly update their profile. The HTC Status from AT&T (seen in the commercial to the left) is one such phone; it features a Facebook button that glows whenever there is content that can be uploaded.

There are also reports that Facebook may be creating their own smartphone with extra Facebook capabilities. They are hoping to take advantage of the 350 million mobile users they currently have in order to create more business.

Although technology is making it easier to upload content to social networking sites, it not always a good idea to do so. With technology right at your fingertips, it might be wise to consider what you are tweeting or posting to see how it will affect your image. Take a few minutes to decide if that angry tweet or funny picture is how you want to present yourself to others.