Tech & Wearables

1. Tech & Wearablesnot supported · human dataAdded 17 August 2026

   Weight-loss apps barely shift the scales after a year

   Weight-loss smartphone apps showed no clear benefit in a sweep of 18 trials with 2703 adolescents and adults with overweight or obesity: at 12 months apps made little to no difference to body weight or BMI compared with minimal support, and results at 24 months looked no better.

   ⚠What it shows: A thorough sweep of all the studies, 18 trials and 2703 people, found no convincing benefit, though certainty ranged from moderate down to very low because the apps varied enormously in features and content. With 34 more trials under way, the verdict could still shift within a couple of years.Meta-analysis · Cochrane Database Syst Rev

   Full breakdown →Energy balance explained →Calorie Deficit Calculator →Mobile health (m-health) smartphone interventions for adolescents and adults with overweight or obesity. Cochrane Database Syst Rev 2024
2. Tech & Wearableswell supported · human dataAdded 17 August 2026

   Blood pressure apps barely work without tailored advice

   Smartphone apps for self-monitoring blood pressure behaviours lowered systolic blood pressure by an average of just 1.64 mmHg across 15 randomised trials in 7415 people treated for hypertension. Apps that added tailored advice achieved a 2.92 mmHg drop, against 0.72 mmHg without it.

   ⚠What it shows: Believable but modest: results pooled from 15 trials where people were assigned at random, covering 7415 people on blood pressure treatment. The average drop is small, and the bigger effect from tailored advice comes from comparing groups of studies with each other rather than from a direct head-to-head test.Meta-analysis · JMIR Mhealth Uhealth

   Full breakdown →Blood pressure explained →Heart Age Calculator →The Association Between Smartphone App-Based Self-monitoring of Hypertension-Related Behaviors and Reductions in High Blood Pressure: Systematic Review and Meta-analysis. JMIR Mhealth Uhealth 2022
3. Tech & Wearableswell supported · human dataAdded 15 August 2026

   Your tracker's calorie burn figure is off by more than 30%

   Across 65 studies of wrist-wearable activity trackers, the Fitbit Charge measured steps with under 25% error and the Apple Watch measured heart rate with under 10% error, but energy expenditure was off by more than 30% for every brand tested.

   ⚠What it shows: A trustworthy overview: a sweep of all 65 studies on wrist trackers in the general population. The studies measured accuracy so differently that results could not be combined into one number, so device comparisons are informal rather than head to head.Systematic review · J Med Internet Res

   Full breakdown →HRV explained →Steps to Calories Calculator →Accuracy and Acceptability of Wrist-Wearable Activity-Tracking Devices: Systematic Review of the Literature. J Med Internet Res 2022
4. Tech & Wearablespreliminary · human dataAdded 12 August 2026

   Scalp current therapy eased pain a touch, did nothing for sleep

   Pooled results from six trials in 232 adults with musculoskeletal pain suggest transcranial alternating current stimulation modestly reduces pain compared with control, but shows no effect on sleep quality. The reviewers rated the overall certainty of the evidence as low.

   ⚠What it shows: An early signal at best: results pooled from just six trials totalling 232 people, and the reviewers rated their own certainty in the evidence as low for both outcomes. The pain benefit was modest, and sleep showed no change at all.Review · Complement Ther Med

   Full breakdown →Sleep Calculator →Efficacy of Transcranial Alternating Current Stimulation for Musculoskeletal Pain and Sleep Quality: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Complement Ther Med 2026
5. Tech & Wearableswell supported · human dataAdded 12 August 2026

   Tracking is tied to weight loss, but hardly anyone keeps it up

   In a systematic review of 39 randomised trials in adults with overweight or obesity, greater digital self-monitoring was linked to weight loss in 74% of the analyses that examined it, yet few interventions kept people tracking on at least 75% of days.

   ⚠What it shows: Convincing on consistency, weaker on cause: a sweep of 39 trials in adults with overweight or obesity found tracking and weight loss moving together, but it cannot prove the logging itself did the work. The real-world catch is that few programmes kept people tracking on most days.Systematic review · Obesity (Silver Spring)

   Full breakdown →Calorie Deficit Calculator →Self-Monitoring via Digital Health in Weight Loss Interventions: A Systematic Review Among Adults with Overweight or Obesity. Obesity (Silver Spring) 2021
6. Tech & Wearablespreliminary · human dataAdded 11 August 2026

   Only one back pain app trial in six showed a benefit

   Interactive digital tools for self-managing low back pain have a weak evidence base: across 6 completed randomised trials with 2,706 adults, only one showed a benefit over control, though none showed harm.

   ⚠What it shows: Take the app-store hype down a notch: a sweep of all the studies up to March 2016 found just six completed trials with 2,706 people, and only one favoured the digital tool. Participants were mostly white, well educated and middle aged, so nobody knows whether these tools help anyone else.Meta-analysis · J Med Internet Res

   Full breakdown →Back Pain →Digital Support Interventions for the Self-Management of Low Back Pain: A Systematic Review. J Med Internet Res 2017
7. Tech & Wearableswell supported · human dataAdded 6 August 2026

   GPS-tracked activity plans trim weight and body fat

   GPS-enabled physical activity programmes produced small but significant reductions in body weight and body fat percentage across nine randomised trials in adults, and adding dietary components did not consistently beat activity-only interventions. Short-term programmes of three months or less showed the greater weight effects.

   ⚠What it shows: Meta-analysis of nine RCTs (1363 adults, mostly female); effects were small, the body-fat result was highly heterogeneous across studies, and robustness was only supported for short-term outcomes.Meta-analysis · Nutrients

   Full breakdown →Energy balance explained →Steps to Calories Calculator →Integrated GPS-Enabled Physical Activity and Dietary Interventions Versus Physical Activity Alone for Obesity Control: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis. Nutrients 2025
8. Tech & Wearableswell supported · human dataAdded 6 August 2026

   Texts nudged blood pressure down in pooled trials

   Pooled across 22 randomised trials, text-message interventions improved medication adherence and reduced systolic blood pressure by 6.12 mmHg and diastolic by 2.66 mmHg, but produced no significant improvement in BMI, LDL, HDL, total cholesterol or HbA1c.

   ⚠What it shows: Meta-analysis of 22 randomised trials, but heterogeneity between studies was extreme for the blood-pressure outcomes (I² of 96% for systolic and 85% for diastolic), populations varied widely, and long-term effects were not established.Meta-analysis · BMC Public Health

   Full breakdown →Total cholesterol explained →Heart Age Calculator →Text messages as a tool to improve cardiovascular disease risk factors control: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized clinical trials. BMC Public Health 2025

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