11 personal health web applications for a fitter, healthier you.
Health is one of those things that if you lose it, it’s difficult to get back. With more and more of us spending increasing amounts of time in from of the screen, to the detriment of our health, I decided to explore some of the applications out there that can actually improve our health for the better. This collection of web based and mobile applications collectively allows you to both monitor and better understand your health, and motivated you to get out there an improve it.
Nike Plus
URL: http://nikeplus.com
What a stroke of genius from Nike with their Nike + product. It essentially connects the motion in your feet with a wireless pedometer, allowing running enthusiasts to not only see real time statistics of their current run whilst it is in progress, but also to compare their run statistics via the web, and compete against others around the world in a variety of challenges. The interactive element to the product is definitely one of its strengths, and numerous users have touted its benefits as a solution which actively motivates the user to get out there and run.
Runkeeper
You’ll have been hard pushed to not stumble upon some of your friends using Runkeeper somewhere along your travels on the web. Their integration with social media makes it hard to avoid, with frequent digital boasts from the fitness elite. For those of us who’s exercise stretches to the lifting and lowering of their pneumatic computer chair, this can be something of a pain in the ass. (The boasting – not the updates).
Runkeeper is technically, genius. It uses the built in GPS capabilities of your phone to track how far you went on your run, how long it took and what your average speed was, with the entire route plotted on a map. When you’ve finished the long hard slog, your daily activities are synched back to the Runkeeper website where your progress can be tracked in your profile, and shared with friends. Bragging rights some would say. Overall with its pricing model being free for the cut down version of the app, you couldn’t beat it with a big stick.
Microsoft HealthVault
URL: http://www.healthvault.com/personal/index.aspx
Microsoft HealthVault lets you gather health data from many sources, store it in a single location, share it with those that you trust, and reuse it with HealthVault-compatible applications to monitor, track and manage your health. It is clearly Microsoft’s initial forage into the personal healthcare market, where increasingly we are becoming reliant on the web and its omnipresence for our sources of health knowledge.
With HealthVault, you can access a range of health and fitness Web tools, upload data from health and fitness devices and share that information with your physcians and others you trust.
You can also use Healthvault to do things like:
- Keep track of weight loss and exercise programs, with useful online tools that can help you meet your goals.
- Manage chronic conditions such as diabetes or high blood pressure.
- Prepare for medical emergencies at home or when you are on vactaion by giving doctors access to your medical information
You can use HealthVault to store health information, such as records from doctors and other healthcare providers, prescriptions from pharmacies, insurance plan information, and even self-care data—like weight, blood pressure, and exercise logs—that you enter yourself or upload from HealthVault enabled personal health device.
A growing number of devices, including blood pressure monitors, glucose meters, heart rate monitors, and more, are designed to work with the solution by allowing you to connect and upload data directly into your records. It’s an interesting application, particularly for those of us who unfortunately need to keep a closer eye on their health.
Google Health
Boasting a recent redesign of their interface, Google provide easy access to your own health information – anytime, anywhere. With a Google Health account, you can store, manage and share all of your health and wellness information in one central place, all available at no charge.
Inside Google health are a number of features for helping you to stay healthy, and manage your own personal profile.
- Personalised “trackers” track your progress and compare your results easily, no matter what goal or issue you’re interested in keeping track off on.
- A progress diary allows you to track your individual experience with medications or health conditions. This could also easily be used for diet tracking.
- Personalised content is provided based on your own goals, conditions or medication you currently have in your profile. This is selected from a number of Google partners, and keeps you up to date with perhaps breakthroughs in treatments, or interesting stories related to your health.
I’m sure many of you would question the benefits of giving this sort of information to a company who specialises in advertising; but the business model for Google Health and the companies overall strategy is more about encouraging users to do more searches on their site – without sending information about your person back to the search giant. (See their dedicated privacy policy.) With every page of Google Health having a search box on the side, the model is aimed at increase Google reach and searches, and ultimately revenue. With API implementation, their investment inh 23 and me, and increased adoption of the service, I dare say there are more commercial opportunities on the horizon.
Open MRS
URL: http://openmrs.org/
An active project, chosen to be part of Google’s Summer of Code 2011, Open MRS is an open source web based medical records system. Initially the project was developed to help medical professionals in the developing world support those affected with HIV and AIDS, but later evolved into a full fledged Java based medical records system which can support many different medical problems. Data from the healthcare system can be easily rendering into summaries, reports, and data views that improves the effectiveness of the people using the system. At its heart lies a complex data dictionary which comprises of questions and answers which the users can setup to record data.
Joining the likes of Dimagi in offering rural healthcare solutions for developing countries, the solution brings technology and people together over the web collaboratively to help improve the quality of life for people affected by poverty.
Fitbit
FitBit is a genius little device that you can clip onto your body and it tracks a number of health metrics as you move around in your day to day pursuits. You can use it to monitor your sleep patterns and habits, training patterns and exercise, and generally keep on top of your health. When you are within a few feet of the base station provided with the solution – it automatically synchs all of your health data to the web for later analysis. It is deeply integrated with many of the products mentioned here, including Google Health, and more recently Runkeeper. The website is also a great addition to the product, allowing easy access to all of your stats and the ability to share it with friends or just keep track of how you’re doing on your fitness goals. For those more tech amongst you a full API is now also available to let developers loose on the platform – which should make for some interesting spin of applications.
CardioTrainer
URL: http://www.worksmartlabs.com/cardiotrainer/about.php
CardioTrainer is arguably one of the best free applications for the Android platform. It has integrated GPS tracking allowing you to see your route, a friend activity feed to keep you motivated, and an integrated voice notification system and music player all built in out of the box. If you are currently using RunKeeper on Android, its definitely worth comparing the two, as some of the features such as the workout schedule and tracking are superb.
PatientsLikeMe
URL: http://www.patientslikeme.com/
Patients like me offers an open approach to healthcare, where you can connect with others around the world with the same health problems as you. From this you can learn more about real-world treatment and symptom reports directly from other people, and discuss over the web what they have found with medication, and alternative therapies. With the web fast becoming the first place people turn to when an ailment or health concern occurs, Patientslikeme offers the perfect community for resolution and discussion of a variety of health related issues.
Withings
Following closely on the heels of their innovative WI-FI enabled scale product, Withings are currently working bringing to market on a digital blood pressure monitor which integrates with your iPhone to provide readings in real time. This product will record and monitor your blood pressure over time, eliminating some of the manual recording process physicians and other health care professionals currently have to perform whilst keeping on top of patient records. It also fully integrates with Google Health, and provides a way for patients to monitor things themselves safely and easily.
Zeo
Zeo is designed to help you analyze your sleep and improve it, all via a personal sleep monitoring devices. It’s composed of a lightweight wireless headband, a bedside display, a set of online analytical tools, and an email-based personalized coaching program, that combine to give you a better understanding of your sleep patterns. The web based system promises to coach you and train your body into achieving a more regular, healthy sleep pattern.
Vitality City
URL: https://www.vitalitycity.com
Vitality City, launching in a couple of days allows users to track health goals resulting in a better, longer life. You can answer questions on your health to get a predicted life expectancy, and then set yourself goals inside the application to help improve on that outlook. Using game mechanics to motivate people, Vitality City concentrates on not just physical but emotional and mental health care as well, as part of its overall programme of health.
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About the Author (Author Profile)
Paul is a regular 28 year old web bloke / programmer with a penchant for online marketing. This blog is a personal outlet, with an eclectic mix of articles.Subscribe
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