Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
Review
. 2015 May 21;3(2):e43.
doi: 10.2196/mhealth.4003.

Public health guidelines for physical activity: is there an app for that? A review of android and apple app stores

Emily Knight  1 , Melanie I Stuckey, Harry Prapavessis, Robert J Petrella
Affiliations
Review

Public health guidelines for physical activity: is there an app for that? A review of android and apple app stores

Emily Knight et al. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth. .

Abstract

Background: Physical activity participation is an important behavior for modifying lifestyle-related disease risk. Mobile health apps for chronic disease management and prevention are being developed at a rapid rate. However, it is unclear whether these apps are evidence-based. Current public health recommendations for physical activity participation for adults highlight the importance of engaging in 150 minutes weekly of purposeful exercise, and muscle strengthening activities on at least 2 days of the week.

Objective: The aims of the present review were to (1) identify available evidence-based physical activity apps, and (2) identify technological features that could be leveraged to improve health outcomes.

Methods: iTunes and Google Play mobile app stores were searched using keyword and category searching during a single day (February 18, 2014) for physical activity apps available in English. The description pages of eligible apps were reviewed by 4 independent reviewers for evidence-based content, technological, and descriptive features. An a priori subset of apps was downloaded for further review (n=6 affiliated with a non-commercial agency; n=10 top rated; n=10 random selection), and developers were contacted for information regarding evidence-informed content.

Results: The initial search yielded 2400 apps, of which 379 apps (n=206 iTunes; n=173 Google Play) were eligible. Primary results demonstrated no apps (n=0) adhering to evidence-based guidelines for aerobic physical activity, and 7 out of 379 implementing evidence-based guidelines for resistance training physical activity. Technological features of apps included social networking (n=207), pairing with a peripheral health device (n=61), and measuring additional health parameters (n=139). Secondary results revealed 1 app that referenced physical activity guidelines (150 minutes/weekly of exercise), and demonstrated that apps were based on various physical activity reports (n=4) or personal expertise (n=2).

Conclusions: The present study demonstrated a shortage of evidence-based physical activity apps. This gap underscores the need for development of evidence-informed mobile apps. Results highlight the opportunity to develop evidence-informed mobile apps that can be used clinically to enhance health outcomes.

Keywords: Exercise; Mobile applications; Public Health.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

Conflicts of Interest: None declared.

Figures

Figure 1
Figure 1
Physical inactivity burden in North America. 85% of Canadian adults and 97% of American adults fail to meet public health guidelines for physical activity.
Figure 2
Figure 2
Flow of search results.
Figure 3
Figure 3
Example of app screenshots.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

References

    1. Mathers C, Loncar D. Projections of global mortality and burden of disease from 2002 to 2030. PLoS Med. 2006 Nov;3(11):e442. doi: 10.1371/journal.pmed.0030442. http://dx.plos.org/10.1371/journal.pmed.0030442 - DOI - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. WHO . Adherence to long-term therapies: Evidence for action. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2003. [2015-05-15]. 6YYDoEg60 http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2003/9241545992.pdf.
    1. WHO . Noncommunicable disease country profiles. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2011. [2015-05-15]. 6YYDzGji2 http://www.who.int/nmh/publications/ncd_profiles2011/en/
    1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. 2011. [2014-10-31]. Physical activity and health http://www.cdc.gov/physicalactivity/everyone/health/
    1. WHO . Global health recommendations on physical activity for health. Geneva: World Health Organization; 2010. [2015-05-15]. 6YYFyzDel http://whqlibdoc.who.int/publications/2010/9789241599979_eng.pdf. - PubMed

LinkOut - more resources