Tag: Health »

MyAutismTeam’s new mobile app provides parents of children on the autism spectrum the ability to connect and stay in touch with other parents just like them. The Facebook-meets-Yelp resource for parents allows for the sharing of posts, local provider referrals and tips, as well as the ability to ask questions to the community and post pictures, all while on-the-go so they are connected to the community whenever they need to be.

Take a look at your iPhone's camera. It doesn't look that special, does it? Sure, it's great for taking snapshots and documenting your life, but you'd never expect it to keep you healthy, would you?

Thanks to the hard working folks at MIT, that perception should change with the release of Cardiio.

The app turns an iPhone into an accurate, touch-free heart rate monitor and it actually works. Using the phone's front camera, it analyzes the amount of light reflected off your face then measures the pulse from that. It sounds a little like magic but there's some clever science behind it.

Every time your heart beats, more blood is pumped into your face which means more light is absorbed and less is reflected away. The app figures things out from that and accurately. It's as simple as that.

Not convinced? We checked in with Ming-Zher Poh who has been working on the technology since 2009. Ming-Zher started work on contact-free heart rate sensing technology during his Ph.D at MIT. After completing his research and gaining his Ph.D, he decided it'd be a great idea to translate that to the iOS market and help people along the way.

Since January, Ming-Zher and digital health startup incubator Rock Health, have been hard at work on refining the technology and producing a fantastically useful app. Cardiio is the result of that hard work.

The app is immensely user-friendly, with it possible to check your heart rate at any time (providing you're in a well lit area). A daily dashboard and weekly and monthly summaries ensure you'll always know your heart rate. Cardiio also reports on how that correlates to your fitness level and, slightly unnervingly, suggests a potential life expectancy based on such figures. Even better, it's so unobtrusive, unlike many other heart rate monitors.

It's all too easy to want to bury your head in the sand or simply not consider how something as crucial as your heart is performing. Ming-Zher Poh's research has gone a huge way to ensuring this doesn't happen, all for the price of $4.99.

The app is out now. If you want to read more on the research conducted and the science behind it all, check out MIT News Office and Ming-Zher Poh's page at the Institute.

HealthTap has a new app that is trying to bring together doctors and those who need medical advice in a new, convenient way. Users can message doctors directly with HealthTap, seeing which doctors are available live to talk about health issues right at that moment. It is possible to talk to them privately, is HIPAA-secure, and supports the ability to share photos and documents with the doctor. Making appointments directly from within the app is possible, and users can view and share their private health records digitally with doctors. HealthTap claims that over 12,000 doctors are available with its service. As well, there’s a directory of over one million doctors available, with a DocScore available for many doctors, showing their effectiveness based on peer review and other publicly-available data.

While many of these features do cost money, HealthTap claims that they often cost less than a co-pay, saving users money and doctors time in solving health issues that may not require full appointments. HealthTap is available for iPhone/iPod touch, iPad, Android, and via the web.

This week at 148Apps.com, we indulged in a little healthy living with our review of the iHealth Blood Pressure Dock. Site editor Rob LeFebvre writes, "The iHealth Blood Pressure Dock is a fantastic piece of tech that will allow anyone, regardless of experience, ability, or consciousness to have their blood pressure taken and monitored over time.

The free app that works alongside the actual blood pressure dock and arm cuff is simple, easy to use, and can be set up with multiple users. This allows families to keep track of more than one family member who might want or need to do so.

While high blood pressure is no laughing matter and should be monitored by a doctor or licensed health care provider, the iHealth blood pressure dock is ideal for tracking blood pressure in between doctor visits."

Want to know more? Read our full review at 148Apps.com.

Meanwhile, at GiggleApps.com, writer Amy Solomon took a trip to learn about polar bears via her review of the Smithsonian's Polar Bear Horizon. She writes, "Polar Bear Horizon – Smithsonian Oceanic Collection is an interactive application based on the book of the same name and now part of a series of Smithsonian applications developed by Oceanhouse Media. Like other apps by Oceanhouse Media, this application includes the choice to listen to narration allowing readers to follow along the included text which becomes highlighted when words are spoken, or to read this book to oneself. Auto-play is also an option."

Read Amy's full review at GiggleApps.

Finally, 148Apps.biz founder Jeff Scott announced the return of MobileBeat to San Francisco, saying "I think of MobileBeat as the business of mobile conference. The conference is about making connections with the business side of the mobile industry. This year the focus of MobileBeat is on something we see ignored all too often, design."

Read more about the upcoming MobileBeat conference on 148Apps.biz.

Another week has passed, but there's still plenty more where that came from. Join us on Twitter and Facebook to track the latest developments, and maybe even score a few free apps along the way. Until next week, stay Brave!

Technology continues to amaze and impress with how it can improve people's lives. A perfect example is that of Glooko and its mobile health services. The company offers a way for diabetes sufferers to monitor their disease through the use of an iPhone logbook app.

The app and accompanying cable based hardware is FDA compliant and automatically syncs with the user's blood glucose meter. Users can then track their readings easily with the information simple to inform healthcare professionals, either in person or via an email based PDF summary.

The app offers further functionality with the ability to add meal tags and notes to readings, giving users a convenient way of checking out exactly what is influencing their blood sugar levels and how. There's even a food database that stores nutritional information for all the user's favorite food.

Ultimately though, the true benefit stems from the ability to track everything on the move and without having to worry about where else to store such information. After all, iPhone users tend to have their iPhone on them at all times, right?

The app is compatible with many popular blood glucose meters so should prove useful to plenty of diabetes sufferers.

The Glooko Logbook app is available now.