Cardiac Monitor Phone App
This simple process has a complicated name: photoplethysmography. Every time the heart sends a pulse of blood through the body, the tiny capillary vessels in the skin expand. When a smartphone's flash illuminates the skin, its camera can capture the miniscule color changes that happen each time the heart beats. (Because you have to hold fairly still for this process, these apps don't provide the sort of continuous monitoring that external heart rate monitors can provide; with these apps, you'll have to stop what you're doing for about 10 seconds to take your pulse.)
Regular physical activity is an important part of maintaining good heart health. MotionX helps you map and track outdoor exercise, such as biking, running, and hiking. The app’s clear display makes it easy to see your time, distance, geographical path, and speed.
CardioSmart was developed by the American College of Cardiology with the goal of improving patient care. The app’s high-resolution graphics and animations make it easier for doctors to discuss common heart problems and treatments. Your doctor can use the app to pull up a 3-D beating heart and answer questions using the visual. You can also look through the graphics to get a better understanding of your heart’s anatomy and how it functions.
A healthy lifestyle can go a long way toward preventing heart disease. Heart Care Health & Diet Tips explains what puts you at risk of heart disease and how you can make dietary changes to reduce some of those risks. View lists of foods to eat and avoid with explanations for each. If you feel overwhelmed or have questions, you can contact a dietitian through the app by tapping the “Contact” button.
The cardiologists who developed CardioVisual know it’s easy to get overwhelmed at your doctor’s office. The app provides a wide range of information about heart disease, including risk factors and prevention. Its goal is to educate patients, making it easier for you to have informed discussions with your healthcare professionals. Get access to a library of 160 short videos and infographics explaining conditions, treatments, and more.
Another option for those who'd like to measure heart rate from the face is Azumio's Cardio Buddy (Free, iOS). This app is not designed to measure heart rate from the finger, though a pro upgrade ($1.99) enables users to use the back camera to check other people's heart rates as well as their own. Overall, Cardio Buddy has a nice display and a fun graph feature that compares your heart rate to both the average heart rate in various nations and to those of random animals. (Did you know a goat's resting heart rate averages 75 beats per minute?)
Dozens of heart rate monitoring apps take advantage of smartphones' built-in ability to provide a quick and easy way for users to take their own pulse — no math required. We recommend looking for one of these apps. Some heart rate monitor apps on the market require users to take their own pulse, tapping their fingers on the screen with each heartbeat. A few are simply timers that do little more than tell you how long to count your own heartbeats. There is little point to downloading these apps, as they don't save much trouble over simply taking your own pulse.