Want better heart health? Theres an app for that
Can a smartphone app save your life? Not on its own, but an app could help you adopt a heart-healthy lifestyle that might reduce your risk of heart attack, stroke and heart disease, a new evidence review suggests.
People are better able to stick to a heart-healthy lifestyle when guided and encouraged by smartphone apps and Internet sites that help set goals and track progress, said lead researcher Dr. Ashkan Afshin. Hes an acting assistant professor of global health at the Institute for Health Metrics and Evaluation at the University of Washington in Seattle.
Our results showed that both Internet-based and mobile-based intervention were effective in improving lifestyle behaviors including diet and physical activity over short term, Afshin said.
These interventions were also effective in achieving a modest weight loss over 3 to 12 months, he added. Afshin and his colleagues analyzed 224 previous studies published between 1990 and 2013, and found that:
People using Internet-based interventions ate better, became more active, lost weight, and cut down on their use of tobacco and alcohol.
Smartphone interventions (including apps, texts and voicemail messages) helped people increase their exercise and lose weight.
Some features of these programs may increase their effectiveness, Afshin said.
For example, programs that have components such as goal-setting and self-monitoring and use multiple modes of communication and tailored messages tended to be more effective.
HealthDay
