Hopelab & Well Being Trust 32
Mobile Health Apps
Nearly two-thirds of teens and young adults say they have used mobile
apps related to health. Previous research has shown that health app
usage is associated with being younger
17
and this study underscores
that observation. A total of 64% of teens and young adults say they
have used a health-related mobile app, with fitness apps being the
most commonly reported (45%). One in four (26%) young people say
they have used nutrition-related apps, while one in five report using
apps related to sleep (20%) or menstrual cycles (20%). About one in
ten say they have used apps related to meditation or mindfulness (11%)
and stress reduction (9%). Only 4% say they have used apps related
to quitting smoking.
On average, teens and young adults report using mobile apps related
to 1.6 health topics. A third (34%) say they have never used a mobile
health app; about half (52%) say they have used apps on 1-3 different
health topics; and 14% report having tried apps on four or more health
topics.
There is not yet a strong evidence base for the effectiveness of health
apps.
18
While this survey is not able to assess effectiveness, it did ask
respondents how helpful they perceived health-related apps they've
tried. We find that, of those who have tried health-related apps, a total
of 76% find them at least "somewhat" helpful: 27% say they were "very"
helpful and 49% say "somewhat." While 64% of young people say they
have "ever" used health apps, 25% say they "currently" do. It appears
that many young people are using health-related apps for just a short
time – to reach a goal, for example.
Table 2: Health app users
Among 14-22 year-olds, percent who have ever
used mobile health apps related to:
17
Carroll, J.K. et al. "Who Uses Mobile Phone
Health Apps and Does Use Matter? A
Secondary Data Analytics Approach"
(Journal of Medical Internet Research;
April 19, 2017). See: https://www.ncbi.
nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5415654/
18
Byambasuren, O.; Sanders, S.; Beller, E.;
Glasziou, P. "Prescribable mHealth apps
identified from an overview of systematic
reviews" (npj Digital Medicine, volume 1,
Article number: 12 (2018); May 9, 2018).
See: https://www.nature.com/articles/
s41746-018-0021-9
Source: Hopelab/Well Being Trust Teens and Young Adults Survey,
February-March 2018. N=1,337 young people ages 14-22.
Fitness
Nutrition
Sleep
Period/menstruation
Meditation/mindfulness
Stress reductions
Medication reminder
Birth control
Mood tracker
Depression
Quitting smoking
Alcohol or drug abuse
Any other health issue
TOTAL – any health app
45%
26%
20%
20%
11%
9%
7%
7%
6%
5%
4%
2%
1%
64%
Digital Health Practices
Digital Health Practices Among
Teens and Young Adults
