Most Fertility Apps Unreliable in Preventing or Achieving Pregnancy

A new study revealed that women should not fully rely on fertility apps to learn when they are the most fertile over the course of one month. Researchers found that only 6 of nearly 100 reviewed fertility apps were accurate in pinpointing ovulation.

Dr. Marguerite Duane, lead author of the study and researcher with Georgetown University School of Medicine, noted that fertility apps are becoming hugely popular as more and more women seek to have a tighter control over their pregnancy.

Additionally, knowing when they are the most fertile throughout a month helps women fend off pregnancies in a more natural way than conventional birth control methods. Fertility apps allow women know their fertile time in the menstrual cycle.

Most fertility apps track ovulation, or the time when the woman is the most likely to get pregnant, based on data on her menstrual cycle. Some apps predict ovulation by looking at women’s basal body temperature (BBT) as well, but this is not very accurate. Study authors explained that shifts in the women’s BBT occur 2-3 days AFTER ovulation.

Several apps help women keep an eye on their fertility by tracking changes in their cervical mucus. When the mucus changes consistency and color this means that women are getting closer to ovulation.

The new study revealed, however, that there are nearly 100 fertility apps to download through Google Play or iTunes. About 55 apps said in their terms of service that they should not be used to plan or avoid pregnancy. These apps were not taken into account during the research.

Researchers were left with just 40 apps to analyze. Each app was assessed under a five-point rating system. For the highest score, an app needed to meet as many of 10 criteria considered crucial to prevent pregnancy.

Study investigators learned that only 30 apps pinpointed ovulation and fertility days. However, only six app were the most accurate apps and had no false negatives. The apps which failed to predict ovulation saw a boost in their accuracy if users had undergone training in fertility awareness.

Study authors do not recommend randomly using a fertility app just because your friend does. Dr. Duane advises women to first get proper training in their fertility times and use the fertility apps that scored at least four on accuracy and authority in the latest study.

The study is slated to be published this week in the Journal of the American Board of Family Medicine.

Image Source: Pixabay

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Nancy Young

When I was younger I used to spend almost all of my free time playing computer games. My mom and dad would go mental over this. “You’re never going to do anything with your life if you are going to play games all day” they used to say. What was even more unusual was the fact that I played more games than most of the guys in my friend group. Looking back, I have to admit that I probably played a bit too much, but I also learned a lot of great things. When I turned 20 I decided that it was high-time to make some money of my own, but the only jobs I could get were that of waitress or cashier. How exciting. After several excruciating months of serving tables I had a great idea: since I love gaming so much, why don’t I write about it? That’s when I started doing small writing projects on Elance. Eventually, I got an offer for a part-time job. During that time I learned all about content marketing strategies and how search engines work. I started writing about various topics such as technology, health and lifestyle and discovered that I was actually good at it. On November 24, 2014, I became part of the ArgyllFreePress team.