Ask the professionals Even while we wait on the Apple Watch, thousands of apps that claim to keep you healthy have already been made available since Apple introduced the iOS 8 Health app, but it has been difficult to figure out which apps really help you with your health – until now… Top 100 health apps HealthTap asked over half a million doctors to assess health-related apps on both iOS and Android, and today released its first annual report on the top 100 health and medical apps as recommended by doctors. Apps were also broken down into categories for this list. I’ve written extensively on the topic of m-health and think HealthTap’s work will make it much easier for us to figure out which health apps might actually be good for our health. Thousands of apps claim to help you stay healthy, but it has been a challenge figuring out which ones you really can trust, in the absence of any medically qualified vetting service. Also read: The easy way to use Apple’s iOS 8 Health app This is a particular concern because: “More and more care will be delivered outside hospitals and clinics,” said Ovum’s lead Healthcare & Life Sciences analyst, Charlotte Davies – and mobile devices, and health apps, will be critical to this, which means we should be equipped to make the right choices. Vetted by professionals The US FDA is slowly understanding the importance of this, but HealthTap is already there: “Health is the fastest growing of all app categories, and the number of health and fitness apps has more than doubled over the last 2 years. With over 100,000 health apps in the Apple App Store and in Google Play, finding the right health app is a daunting task,” HealthTap CEO, Ron Gutman, said in a press release. “Until now, there’s been no way for people to tell if an app is medically accurate and helpful, if it promotes ideas that have no medical foundation, or even if it is harmful,” said Dr. Geoffrey Rutledge, HealthTap’s Chief Medical Officer. HealthTap offers a range of mobile solutions to connect patients with doctors to get health advice, consultations and app recommendations via AppRx. HealthTap’s content is curated and rated by the company’s network of over 65,000 doctors, who were asked to contribute to the report along with over 500,000 others. Mobile health HealthTap hasn’t said how many doctors contributed, but the large sample group suggests the findings are credible. Doctors were asked to assess the solutions using consistent criteria. “For several years, HealthTap has received a significant amount of feedback from users informing us that they are confused by the deluge of app choices available to them,” Gutman says. “Many doctors have also told us they’d like to learn which apps their peers recommend and use in their practices.” It is interesting that so many of the apps recommended by the doctors are less widely known – this is critically important as it suggests some of the apps we are familiar with aren’t delivering what they promise, while some less well known solutions might. I welcome HealthTap’s attempt to add professional medical insights to help guide consumers through the challenge of trying to figure out which apps are good for them. I imagine this kind of professional medical peer-based review will eventually become part of any reputable app stores, but now, thanks to HealthTap, you have some idea of which apps are good for you. I’ve listed the top three iOS apps by category on the next page. Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic’s Kool Aid Corner community and join the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple? Got a story? Drop me a line via Twitter or in comments below and let me know. I’d like it if you chose to follow me Doctors say these are the healthy health apps: Extracted from HealthTap’s far more extensive list, the top three iOS apps by category (and the number of doctor recommendations for each) include (I can’t guarantee all the links will work in every iTunes region): Top 100 list (first three) Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker (347) Weight Watchers Mobile (320) Lose It! (289) Ab Workout Apps Daily Workout Apps (67) Ab Trainer X (34) Abs Trainer FREE (23) Addiction Apps MyQuit Coach (81) Quit Pro (38) Stop Smoking with Self Hypnosis (30) Aerobics Apps Circuit Training Cardiovascular (21) StepTrakLite (20) Walkathon + Fitness Games (19) Alternative Medicine About Herbs (125) Health Remedy (34) My Natural Healer (28) Anatomy Visual Anatomy (466) Netter’s Anatomy Atlas (211) Brain Tutor 3D (110) Children’s Health KidsDoc (146) STAT GrowthCharts (50) My Baby Today (78) Diabetes Glucose Buddy (155) Diabetes App (79) Diabetes Log (66) Diet apps Calorie Counter and Diet Tracker (205) Atkins Carb Tracker (65) LiveStrong Calorie Tracker (60) Disabilities apps Color Blindness Group Test (29) PTVideo.TV Pain Therapy (28) VisionSim (26) Endurance Training MapMyFitness (58) Runtastic Ride & Route Tracker (48) Distance Meter Free (35) Fitness & Exercise Fitbit (113) Fitness Buddy (74) Men’s Health Workouts (62) Apps for Doctors Epocrates (1220) BMI Tool (392) CDC Vaccine Schedule (386) Healthcare Services First Aid (252) Emergency First Aid & Treatment (173) EyeChart (121) Healthy Eating Fooducate (148) Food Labels with Nutritional Facts (134) Eat This, Not That! Restaurants (92) Healthy Living Hydrate Yourself (87) Virtual Dentist (39) CDC eCards (36) Heart Health Instant Heart Rate (197) Pocket CPR (138) Pocket First Aid & CPR (121) Medical Conditions Apps Stroke Riskometer (187) Acuity (62) (unavailable) EyeXam (54) Medication Apps Drugs & Medications (103) Pill Monitor (100) Poisons & Toxins (85) Mental Health T2 Mood Tracker (39) CaringBridge (38) Happy Hints (33) Mind & Body Meditation Oasis (74) Breathing Zone (72) Relax (60) Pregnancy & Fertility BabyBump Pregnancy Free (92) Fertility & Pregnancy Calculator (61) Pregnancy + (50) Relationships & Sex Safe Sex (39) Get Them Tested (30) GoUpToHer Approach Anxiety Retrainer (27) Running Apps RunKeeper (239) Runtastic (100) Nike+ Running (87) Skin & Beauty Ultraviolet (60) UMSkinCheck (44) Chemical Maze (41) Sleep and Dreams White Noise: Relax. Sleep. Better. (253) Sleep Cycle Alarm Clock (86) Sleepmaker Rain Pro (70) Sports Apps Sports Tracker (26) Swim Log (23) Medical iRehab Tennis Elbow (23) Strength Training Bodyweight Training (31) JEFIT (32) Pumping Weight (22) Weight Loss Apps Weight Watchers Mobile (290) Calorie Counter & Diet Tracker (287) Lose It! (266) Women’s Health Period Plus (80) Women’s Health (66) Period Tracker Deluxe (65) Yoga Apps Simply Yoga Free (48) Chair Yoga (27) Yoga for Weight Loss (26) NB: Many of these apps are available in both paid or “free” versions, some feature in-app purchases. In most cases (but not all) I’ve snagged the free version, and I’ve tried to link to the correct app. A similar list for Android is also available. Google+? If you use social media and happen to be a Google+ user, why not join AppleHolic’s Kool Aid Corner community and join the conversation as we pursue the spirit of the New Model Apple? Got a story? Drop me a line via Twitter or in comments below and let me know. 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