T‘app’ that?

Ever since Google Play and iTunes introduced app services, you can plan your daily schedule, log your calorie count, read up on stock market news, do a workout in under seven minutes to get rid of that excess fat — all with the tap of a finger. A recent study by market research firm Nielsen found that the average person uses 27 apps a month! However, are these apps really helping improve one’s lifestyle? We asked experts from the fields of health, fitness, sex, finance and beauty to give us their verdict:

Finance
Vishal Baxi, founder and CEO, KV Wealth Advisors:
There are various apps available for financially aware and not-so-financially aware individuals. Today there are apps available that provide trading and market monitoring tools with the latest Indian stock market news, intraday charts, stock tips from experts in the Indian market and more. These features make it very convenient for people to trade and track their investments in stock market; and if used carefully, it can help them make good returns. Having said that, if a person not having adequate knowledge of the stock markets decides to invest — lured by the convenience of apps — it can turn out to be risky. Basic apps that will help you save can be used. For instance, there are apps available to keep a check on your personal budget and aid in financial planning. They help ascertain your monthly expenses, thus helping save money. However, these apps add value to advice of financial advisors and cannot replace financial planners.

Health
Clinical nutritionist consultant Kanchan Patwardhan:
Our schedules are so packed that often it is difficult to incorporate healthy habits into our daily lives. There are a few apps like reminders to drink water and reminders to have a mid-meal snack, which are blessings. Then there are pedometer apps, which count the number of steps you have taken during the day. Now for a fitness freak, this spells good news. A little motivation always helps in the long run. However, there are a few apps, which do not help as much as they promise.

There are lot of calorie counting apps today but unfortunately they do not help as much as they promise. Most of these apps do not have Indian food listed in their database, and even if they do, the calories aren’t as accurate. For instance, if an individual, by habit, uses much more oil in his/her cooking than he/she is supposed to, then they are definitely consuming more calories. Apps cannot give you that personalised touch. Calorie consumption is also based on one’s metabolism, fitness level and medical condition. This is where a nutritionist or dietician comes into focus. Use these apps, but you definitely cannot depend on them.

Fitness
Fitness trainer Krushmi Chheda:
In today’s tech savvy world, fitness apps are a rage purely because of the data available just at a tap of the finger. As much as each one of us like seeing data and results, which look fantastic when typed out, it still does not rectify the lifestyle issues one faces. There is no app on the Internet, which can match your body’s ability to maintain homeostasis or balance. In this case the apps can be used skilfully to maintain training and food diaries but cannot be used to follow a generic recommended routine.

Replacing exercising in the gym with training apps can deprive one of the outdoor environment that can help one train harder. The 30-day challenges provide a jump-start to those who procrastinate. Also, four weeks of consistent training can show results with fitness and body composition. But one must be aware that a permanent shift in physiological transformations within the body happens over eight weeks on training. Hence 30-day challenges, as available on fitness apps, can only be used as a stepping-stone to start the process.

Sex
Sexologist Prakash Kothari:
There are a lot of apps that talk about sex education, which does benefit individuals who are seeking information. But in no way does it give a legit solution to every question. For instance, intercourse during pregnancy is complicated, and information from an app cannot be taken into consideration! A couple needs to visit a doctor in this case. An individual should make sure that he shouldn’t self-medicate simply because information is available on an app. You need to talk to someone who is educated enough to guide you through it.  

Beauty
Celebrity hair and make-up stylist Asif Ahmed:
I have seen a few hair and make-up tutorials on YouTube and they have been very impressive to say the least. It is interesting to see amateurs give their tips about makeup regimes, and even make a few interesting points. I don’t know of a beauty app that has managed to come at par with these videos but if there are any in the making, then why not? Make up adds to one’s confidence, and if it is available in an app format, I am sure it is going to be a hit.