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Apple Watch Series 5 vs. Fitbit Versa 2: Best smartwatch to give as a gift

Apple Watch Series 5 vs. Fitbit Versa 2: Best smartwatch to give as a gift

The Apple Watch Series 5 starts at $399 (£399, AU$649) and makes an ideal gift for an iPhone user who wants to keep an eye on their health and fitness goals, or get notifications from their phone. But the Fitbit Versa 2 costs half as much and has many similar features, plus it works across Android and iOS. I've been wearing both these watches for a few weeks to determine which one is better at tracking workouts, getting notifications and has the best battery life. 

Read more: Best gifts for people who are obsessed with CrossFit

Angela Lang/CNET

A versatile hybrid that's equal parts smartwatch and fitness tracker, the Versa 2 adds a few improvements over the first version that make it a good option for Apple and Android owners alike. Like the Apple Watch, it too has an always-on display, but the battery will last more than twice as long. Expect at least five days between charges if you don't have the always-on display active. It also gives you built-in sleep tracking, Alexa support and Spotify control on your wrist.

Read the Fitbit Versa 2 hands-on.

All-day comfort so you can go from the office to the gym

The Apple Watch comes in two sizes (40mm and 44mm) while the Versa 2 just comes in one size. I have a fairly small wrist and found both of these watches very comfortable to wear all day. With the Versa 2, I hardly had to take it off at all because I could use it to track my sleep.

Want a wide range of finishes and straps to choose from? You'll find the biggest selection with the Apple Watch. Everything from aluminum and stainless steel to the more expensive ceramic and titanium finishes that cost upward of $800. The Versa 2 has three aluminum color finishes with a variety of straps.

Angela Lang/CNET

The Versa 2 gets a much nicer color AMOLED display than the first generation Versa and it's easy to see in bright sunlight when the brightness is turned to max. (The always-on display could be a little brighter for me during outdoor workouts, however.) Notifications and on-screen prompts are clear and legible.

The Apple Watch uses a color LTPO OLED Retina display. It also has Force Touch, so you can press on the screen to register different options.

They're both water-resistant to 50 meters (164 feet) so you can use them to track swims and they'll be fine if subjected to occasional splashes. 

Fitbit still makes its straps pretty difficult to swap in and out, as they have tiny toggles, whereas the Apple Watch is simpler with a button to slide the strap in and out. The charging dock for the Versa 2 is also a pain. Not only is it not backward-compatible with older generations of Fitbit watches like the original Versa, the cord doesn't tuck underneath the dock neatly so it's next to impossible to get your watch to lie flat on the dock when it's charging.

Smart features put the Apple Watch a step ahead

If you like customizing the look of your watch face, the Versa 2 has a lot more options to choose from than the Apple Watch, including third-party watch faces. There's even a Bitmoji watch face that changes expressions depending on your activity or time of day (my personal favorite).

Both have an always-on display and, thanks to the latest Fitbit OS 4.1 update, the Versa 2 now gets the option of a color always-on display, like the Apple Watch. But the Apple Watch only makes it through one whole day with a little extra to spare when I have the always-on display active. That's with a 40-minute workout thrown in and regular use throughout the day getting notifications from my phone. The Versa 2 makes it two-and-a-half days with always-on active and the same usage. That goes up to five-and-a-half days when the display is set to raise-to-wake.

The always-on display on the Versa 2.

Angela Lang/CNET

Being smartwatches, both support voice assistants, though they handle that in a different way. With the Versa 2 you get Alexa support to control smart devices, check the weather, start a workout or set reminders. There's no speaker, so you'll have to read the screen to check responses. And it's kind of slow.

With the Apple Watch closely integrated with Siri, you can speak the wake word or hold the button to summon the assistant. You'll be able to hear Siri talk, send text messages, speak responses and do most of what Siri offers on your phone.

Of course, you'll also be able to customize what notifications come through from your phone on both of these watches. However, you will only be able to respond to notifications from the Versa 2 if you're on Android, not iPhone. Both allow you to accept and reject calls from your wrist, regardless of what phone you're tied to, but if you have the Versa 2 you won't be able to take the call on your wrist because there's no speaker -- you'll need to grab your phone.

For me, the biggest advantage that the Apple Watch has over the Versa 2 when it comes to smart features is built-in connectivity, both GPS and cellular, which means you can leave your phone at home and take calls, send messages or stream music on the go when doing an outdoor workout, for example. (It does come at an extra cost, however.) With Emergency SOS you'll also be able to call emergency services from your wrist and share your location, plus alert your emergency contacts. The Apple Watch Series 5 also offers a built-in compass.

Both offer music storage, although it's more complicated to pull across music to the Versa 2 from a computer than it is to use the seamless transfer offered between the iPhone and Apple Watch. You can also pay with your wrist thanks to Fitbit Pay and Apple Pay on the Versa 2 and Apple Watch respectively.

I've been testing the Apple Watch and Versa 2 primarily with an iPhone and definitely feel the Apple Watch was the faster of the two when it comes to syncing and transferring settings. Occasionally, I have noticed integrations with third-party apps such as Spotify and Snapchat for the Bitmoji face require me to log in and sync again through the Fitbit app.

Read about some of the other features offered in WatchOS 6 on the Apple Watch.

Fitness tracking is Fitbit's forte, but Apple has ECG

I have used both of these watches during a number of different workouts (Pilates, indoor spin class, outdoor runs and outdoor bike rides) and have been impressed with the results from both. During my outdoor run, for example, both gave fairly consistent results when it came to tracking my heart rate, although I did find the Apple Watch updated my heart rate slightly faster. I haven't yet tested these watches against the gold standard in consumer heart rate tracking, a chest strap.

The Versa 2, however, can show you what heart rate zone you're in during a workout, such as cardio or fat burn, which I appreciate. Only the Apple Watch offers you on-wrist cadence tracking so you can see your steps per minute, plus pace alerts for running that can notify you if you fall below your chosen pace. You can see your pace on the wrist for the Versa 2, but you won't get alerts.

Both watches can track plenty of different workouts and automatically detect certain activities like running or walking. I find it easier to see and interpret the data from my workouts using the Fitbit app rather than trying to search for it across the Activity app or Health app on iPhone.

Fitbit also offers the Coach app (you'll need to download and sync it across to the watch from the Fitbit app) which puts three free workouts with visual guidance on your wrist. This hasn't changed since the first Versa but it's still a nice touch for those who might not have time for a full workout. You can pay for a Fitbit Premium subscription ($9.99 a month in the US) to get more workouts.

Sleep tracking on the Versa 2.

Sarah Tew/CNET

Sleep tracking is only available natively on the Versa 2 and I really like how Fitbit shows you a breakdown of your different sleep stages, such as REM and deep sleep, plus gives you a sleep score out of 100. Thanks to the latest OS 4.1 update, you can now see your sleep score on the Versa 2 and the watch now has a feature that vibrates to wake you at the optimal time in your sleep cycle (within 30 minutes of your alarm). Fitbit calls this smart wake.

Unfortunately the app won't tell you much about how to improve the sleep score (apart from some standard prompts to go to bed on time) unless you have a Fitbit Premium subscription which has more advanced sleep tools and analysis.

I also found that there was sometimes a variance between how I felt and the sleep score: For example, one night I got 8.5 hours of rest and felt great in the morning, but my sleep score was in the low 60s. The sleep score does take into account your restoration, which is sleeping heart rate and how much you toss and turn during the night. (Maybe I'm an overly active sleeper, because my restoration score showed a lot of restlessness.)

The Apple Watch helps you keep tabs on your daily activity using a ring-based system, which hasn't changed since the first generation. On the Versa 2 you can find your daily metrics in the Today section by swiping down from the main screen.

As for health and heart tracking in particular, the Apple Watch Series 5 pulls ahead. With a built-in ECG (electrocardiogram) that's FDA-cleared, the watch can also detect high, low and irregular heart rates and notify you accordingly. It also has fall detection. Both watches offer menstrual cycle tracking, although you can't log details on the Versa 2 like you can on the Apple Watch. Instead, you'll need to do that in the Fitbit app.

Which one's right for me?

Considering the Versa 2 costs half as much as the Apple Watch Series 5, if money is your concern, then this is the watch for you. Especially because it works across Android and iOS. It also has a wide range of activities that it can track and the Fitbit app makes it really easy to see your fitness metrics.

For runners, or those who want to leave their phone at home and stream music on the go, make calls or send messages, the Apple Watch with built-in LTE is the clear choice. It also has the benefit of ECG in certain countries.

Also, now that Apple has reduced the entry price of the Apple Watch Series 3 (which also has GPS and an LTE option) to $200, it's another good option for Apple users who want the tightest integration with an iPhone.

Originally published earlier this year.

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TikTok Parents Are Taking Advantage of Their Kids. It Needs to Stop

TikTok Parents Are Taking Advantage of Their Kids. It Needs to Stop

Rachel Barkman's son started accurately identifying different species of mushroom at the age of 2. Together they'd go out into the mossy woods near her home in Vancouver and forage. When it came to occasionally sharing in her TikTok videos her son's enthusiasm and skill for picking mushrooms, she didn't think twice about it -- they captured a few cute moments, and many of her 350,000-plus followers seemed to like it.

That was until last winter, when a female stranger approached them in the forest, bent down and addressed her son, then 3, by name and asked if he could show her some mushrooms. 

"I immediately went cold at the realization that I had equipped complete strangers with knowledge of my son that puts him at risk," Barkman said in an interview this past June. 

This incident, combined with research into the dangers of sharing too much, made her reevaluate her son's presence online. Starting at the beginning of this year, she vowed not to feature his face in future content. 

"My decision was fueled by a desire to protect my son, but also to protect and respect his identity and privacy, because he has a right to choose the way he is shown to the world," she said.

These kinds of dangers have cropped up alongside the rise in child influencers, such as 10-year-old Ryan Kaji of Ryan's World, who has almost 33 million subscribers, with various estimates putting his net worth in the multiple tens of millions of dollars. Increasingly, brands are looking to use smaller, more niche, micro- and nano-influencers, developing popular accounts on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube to reach their audiences. And amid this influencer gold rush there's a strong incentive for parents, many of whom are sharing photos and videos of their kids online anyway, to get in on the action. 

The increase in the number of parents who manage accounts for their kids -- child influencers' parents are often referred to as "sharents" -- opens the door to exploitation or other dangers. With almost no industry guardrails in place, these parents find themselves in an unregulated wild west. They're the only arbiters of how much exposure their children get, how much work their kids do, and what happens to money earned through any content they feature in.

"Once public engagement happens, it is very hard, if not impossible, to really put meaningful boundaries around it."

Leah Plunkett, author, Sharenthood

Instagram didn't respond to multiple requests for comment about whether it takes any steps to safeguard child influencers. A representative for TikTok said the company has a zero-tolerance approach to sexual exploitation and pointed to policies to protect accounts of users under the age of 16. But these policies don't apply to parents posting with or on behalf of their children. YouTube didn't immediately respond to a request for comment.

"When parents share about their children online, they act as both the gatekeeper -- the one tasked with protecting a child's personal information -- and as the gate opener," said Stacey Steinberg, a professor of law at the University of Florida and author of the book Growing Up Shared. As the gate opener, "they benefit, gaining both social and possibly financial capital by their online disclosures."

The reality is that some parents neglect the gatekeeping and leave the gate wide open for any internet stranger to walk through unchecked. And walk through they do.

Meet the sharents

Mollie is an aspiring dancer and model with an Instagram following of 122,000 people. Her age is ambiguous but she could be anywhere from 11-13, meaning it's unlikely she's old enough to meet the social media platform's minimum age requirement. Her account is managed by her father, Chris, whose own account is linked in her bio, bringing things in line with Instagram's policy. (Chris didn't respond to a request for comment.)

You don't have to travel far on Instagram to discover accounts such as Mollie's, where grown men openly leer at preteen girls. Public-facing, parent-run accounts dedicated to dancers and gymnasts -- who are under the age of 13 and too young to have accounts of their own -- number in the thousands. (To protect privacy, we've chosen not to identify Mollie, which isn't her real name, or any other minors who haven't already appeared in the media.)

Parents use these accounts, which can have tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of followers, to raise their daughters' profiles by posting photos of them posing and demonstrating their flexibility in bikinis and leotards. The comment sections are often flooded with sexualized remarks. A single, ugly word appeared under one group shot of several young girls in bikinis: "orgy."

Some parents try to contain the damage by limiting comments on posts that attract too much attention. The parent running one dancer account took a break from regular scheduling to post a pastel-hued graphic reminding other parents to review their followers regularly. "After seeing multiple stories and posts from dance photographers we admire about cleaning up followers, I decided to spend time cleaning," read the caption. "I was shocked at how many creeps got through as followers."

But "cleaning up" means engaging in a never-ending game of whack-a-mole to keep unwanted followers at bay, and it ignores the fact that you don't need to be following a public account to view the posts. Photos of children are regularly reposted on fan or aggregator accounts, over which parents have no control, and they can also be served up through hashtags or through Instagram's discovery algorithms.

The simple truth is that publicly posted content is anyone's for the taking. "Once public engagement happens, it is very hard, if not impossible, to really put meaningful boundaries around it," said Leah Plunkett, author of the book Sharenthood and a member of the faculty at Harvard Law School.

This concern is at the heart of the current drama concerning the TikTok account @wren.eleanor. Wren is an adorable blonde 3-year-old girl, and the account, which has 17.3 million followers, is managed by her mother, Jacquelyn, who posts videos almost exclusively of her child. 

"As kids get older, they naturally want to define themselves on their own terms, and if parents have overshared about them in public spaces, that can be difficult."

Stacey Steinberg, author, Growing Up Shared

Concerned onlookers have pointed Jacquelyn toward comments that appear to be predatory, and have warned her that videos in which Wren is in a bathing suit, pretending to insert a tampon, or eating various foodstuffs have more watches, likes and saves than other content. They claim her reluctance to stop posting in spite of their warnings demonstrates she's prioritizing the income from her account over Wren's safety. Jacquelyn didn't respond to several requests for comment.

Last year, the FBI ran a campaign in which it estimated that there were 500,000 predators online every day -- and that's just in the US. Right now, across social platforms, we're seeing the growth of digital marketplaces that hinge on child exploitation, said Plunkett. She doesn't want to tell other parents what to do, she added, but she wants them to be aware that there's "a very real, very pressing threat that even innocent content that they put up about their children is very likely to be repurposed and find its way into those marketplaces."

Naivete vs. exploitation

When parent influencers started out in the world of blogging over a decade ago, the industry wasn't exploitative in the same way it is today, said Crystal Abidin, an academic from Curtin University who specializes in internet cultures. When you trace the child influencer industry back to its roots, what you find is parents, usually mothers, reaching out to one another to connect. "It first came from a place of care among these parent influencers," she said.

Over time, the industry shifted, centering on children more and more as advertising dollars flowed in and new marketplaces formed. 

Education about the risks hasn't caught up, which is why people like Sarah Adams, a Vancouver mom who runs the TikTok account @mom.uncharted, have taken it upon themselves to raise the flag on those risks. "My ultimate goal is just have parents pause and reflect on the state of sharenting right now," she said. 

But as Mom Uncharted, Adams is also part of a wider unofficial and informal watchdog group of internet moms and child safety experts shedding light on the often disturbing way in which some parents are, sometimes knowingly, exploiting their children online.

The troubling behavior uncovered by Adams and others suggests there's more than naivete at play -- specifically when parents sign up for and advertise services that let people buy "exclusive" or "VIP" access to content featuring their children.

Some parent-run social media accounts that Adams has found linked out to a site called SelectSets, which lets the parents sell photo sets of their children. One account offered sets with titles such as "2 little princesses." SelectSets has described the service as "a classy and professional" option for influencers to monetize content, allowing them to "avoid the stigma often associated with other platforms."

Over the last few weeks, SelectSets has gone offline and no owner could be traced for comment.

In addition to selling photos, many parent-run dancer accounts, Mollie's included, allow strangers to send the dancers swimwear and underwear from the dancers' Amazon wish lists, or money to "sponsor" them to "realize their dream" or support them on their "journeys."

While there's nothing technically illegal about anything these parents are doing, they're placing their children in a gray area that's not explicitly sexual but that many people would consider to be sexualized. The business model of using an Amazon wish list is one commonly embraced by online sugar babies who accept money and gifts from older men.

"Our Conditions of Use and Sale make clear that users of Amazon Services must be 18 or older or accompanied by a parent or guardian," said an Amazon spokesperson in a statement. "In rare cases where we are made aware that an account has been opened by a minor without permission, we close the account."

Adams says it's unlikely to be other 11-year-olds sending their pocket money to these girls so they attend their next bikini modeling shoot. "Who the fuck do you think is tipping these kids?" she said. "It's predators who are liking the way you exploit your child and giving them all the content they need."

Turning points

Plunkett distinguishes between parents who are casually sharing content that features their kids and parents who are sharing for profit, an activity she describes as "commercial sharenting." 

"You are taking your child, or in some cases, your broader family's private or intimate moments, and sharing them digitally, in the hope of having some kind of current or future financial benefit," she said.

No matter the parent's hopes or intentions, any time children appear in public-facing social media content, that content has the potential to go viral, and when it does, parents have a choice to either lean in and monetize it or try to rein it in.

During Abidin's research -- in which she follows the changing activities of the same influencers over time -- she's found that many influencer parents reach a turning point. It can be triggered by something as simple as other children at school being aware of their child's celebrity or their child not enjoying it anymore, or as serious as being involved in a car chase while trying to escape fans (an occurrence recounted to Abidin by one of her research subjects). 

"Frankly, this is all just a large social experiment."

Sarah Adams, who runs the TikTok account @mom.uncharted

One influencer, Katy Rose Pritchard, who has almost 92,000 Instagram followers, decided to stop showing her children's faces on social media this year after she discovered they were being used to create role-playing accounts. People had taken photos of her children that she'd posted and used them to create fictional profiles of children for personal gratification, which she said in a post made her feel "violated."

All these examples highlight the different kinds of threats sharents are exposing their children to. Plunkett describes three "buckets" of risk tied to publicly sharing content online. The first and perhaps most obvious are risks involving criminal and/or dangerous behavior, posing a direct threat to the child. 

The second are indirect risks, where content posted featuring children can be taken, reused, analyzed or repurposed by people with nefarious motives. Consequences include anything from bullying to harming future job prospects to millions of people having access to children's medical information -- a common trope on YouTube is a video with a melodramatic title and thumbnail involving a child's trip to the hospital, in which influencer parents with sick kids will document their health journeys in blow-by-blow detail.

The third set of risks are probably the least talked about, but they involve potential harm to a child's sense of self. If you're a child influencer, how you see yourself as a person and your ability to develop into an adult is "going to be shaped and in some instances impeded by the fact that your parents are creating this public performance persona for you," said Plunkett.

Often children won't be aware of what this public persona looks like to the audience and how it's being interpreted. They may not even be aware it exists. But at some point, as happened with Barkman, the private world in which content is created and the public world in which it's consumed will inevitably collide. At that point, the child will be thrust into the position of confronting the persona that's been created for them.

"As kids get older, they naturally want to define themselves on their own terms, and if parents have overshared about them in public spaces, that can be difficult, as many will already have notions about who that child is or what that child may like," said Steinberg. "These notions, of course, may be incorrect. And some children may value privacy and wish their life stories were theirs -- not their parents -- to tell."

Savannah and Cole LaBrant have documented nearly everything about their children's lives.

Jim Spellman/WireImage

This aspect of having their real-life stories made public is a key factor distinguishing children working in social media from children working in the professional entertainment industry, who usually play fictional roles. Many children who will become teens and adults in the next couple of decades will have to reckon with the fact that their parents put their most vulnerable moments on the internet for the world to see -- their meltdowns, their humiliation, their most personal moments. 

One influencer family, the LaBrants, were forced to issue a public apology in 2019 after they played an April Fools' Day Joke on their 6-year-old daughter Everleigh. The family pretended they were giving her dog away, eliciting tears throughout the video. As a result, many viewers felt that her parents, Sav and Cole, had inflicted unnecessary distress on her.

In the past few months, parents who film their children during meltdowns to demonstrate how to calm them down have found themselves the subject of ire on parenting Subreddits. Their critics argue that it's unfair to post content of children when they're at their most vulnerable, as it shows a lack of respect for a child's right to privacy.

Privacy-centric parenting

Even the staunchest advocates of child privacy know and understand the parental instinct of wanting to share their children's cuteness and talent with the world. "Our kids are the things usually we're the most proud of, the most excited about," said Adams. "It is normal to want to show them off and be proud of them."

When Adams started her account two years ago, she said her views were seen as more polarizing. But increasingly people seem to relate and share her concerns. Most of these are "average parents," naive to the risks they're exposing their kids to, but some are "commercial sharents" too.

Even though they don't always see eye to eye, the private conversations she's had with parents of children (she doesn't publicly call out anyone) with massive social media presences have been civil and productive. "I hope it opens more parents' eyes to the reality of the situation, because frankly this is all just a large social experiment," she said. "And it's being done on our kids. And that just doesn't seem like a good idea."

For Barkman, it's been "surprisingly easy, and hugely beneficial" to stop sharing content about her son. She's more present, and focuses only on capturing memories she wants to keep for herself.

"When motherhood is all consuming, it sometimes feels like that's all you have to offer, so I completely understand how we have slid into oversharing our children," she said. "It's a huge chunk of our identity and our hearts."

But Barkman recognizes the reality of the situation, which is that she doesn't know who's viewing her content and that she can't rely on tech platforms to protect her son. "We are raising a generation of children who have their entire lives broadcast online, and the newness of social media means we don't have much data on the impacts of that reality on children," she said. "I feel better acting with caution and letting my son have his privacy so that he can decide how he wants to be perceived by the world when he's ready and able."

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What States Can and Can't Do When Banning Abortion

What States Can and Can't Do When Banning Abortion

For more information about your reproductive health rights and related federal resources, you can visit the US government's

Reproductive Rights

site.

Whether someone can get an abortion or related medical procedure mostly hinges on which state they live in after the Supreme Court overturned Roe v. Wade last month and ended the constitutional right to abortion. But the switch from federal protection to state law isn't straightforward and has led to confusion and misinformation on what pregnant patients and physicians can do.

In this still developing landscape, how confident can people be that their treatment is still legal?

"The answer to all your questions is 'Who the heck knows,'" said Dr. Louise Perkins King, a surgeon and bioethicist at Harvard Medical School. "And that's the problem."

The US Department of Health and Human Services issued guidance on July 11 reminding physicians of their responsibilities under the existing Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act, or EMTLA, which supports the need to treat and stabilize patients in an emergency, including pregnant patients who may require an abortion. Days later, Texas sued the Biden administration over the law, which allows for medical assistance to save the life of the mother, because, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton said, it "seeks to transform every emergency room in the country into a walk-in abortion clinic." 

On Tuesday, a judge in Texas blocked the EMTLA guidance, so physicians in that state may no longer be protected by federal law if they perform an abortion when they deem it medically necessary but it falls outside of Texas' interpretation of a life-endangering pregnancy. Physicians nationwide who are members of the American Association of Pro-Life Gynecologists and Obstetricians or the Christian Medical and Dental Association are also exempt -- a total of about 18,000 health care providers, according to the court document.

Texas' new trigger law -- which will be in effect on Aug. 25 -- bans all abortions except when the pregnancy puts the mother "at risk of death or poses a serious risk of substantial impairment of a major bodily function." Physicians who perform an illegal abortion will be committing a felony. It doesn't make exceptions for rape, incest or fetal abnormalities, and it also doesn't make an exception for when the pregnant person's risk of death would come from a "claim or diagnosis" that they'll be hurt or might die in the future. (This could be interpreted to mean a doctor can't provide an abortion if a woman threatens to die by suicide because she has depression.) All abortions are currently banned in Texas after the state's Supreme Court ruled that a law from the 1920s could stand.

Legal battles within some states will continue to shape post-Roe America, with the landscape changing by the day. And lawsuits like the one in Texas clarify the country's stance on whether state law preempts federal rule on abortion or reproductive health care. Basically, can federal regulations trump state law? 

"There's going to be cases that are going to have to determine this question," I. Glenn Cohen, a professor and bioethicist at Harvard Law School, said. 

The argument over medication abortion access -- which is banned or restricted in many states but still available to people if they order it (not without risk) online -- will likely also be one of the first big court cases post-Roe, Cohen said. Questions of whether federal regulations on medication abortion conflict directly enough with state restrictions will continue to be center stage.

Medication abortion, for use in early pregnancy, accounts for more than half of abortions in the US. Restricting the pills is the new frontier of abortion bans.

Robyn Beck/Getty Images

Other federal guidance issued by the Biden administration includes a reminder to pharmacists that they are required to fill medication and birth control prescriptions for patients. Failing to do so is discrimination based on pregnancy status. This was in response to the many reports of women having treatment delayed or prescriptions denied while health care workers try to  navigate around new state laws.

Here's what we know today.

Can states ban abortion pills? Not completely, but some are trying. 

Any state with a current total ban on abortion -- including Texas, Oklahoma, South Dakota, Alabama, Arkansas, Mississippi, Missouri and Wisconsin -- also bans medication abortion. Heavy restrictions in other states, including Tennessee and South Carolina, which ban abortion after about six weeks, also extend to medication abortion. This means providers can't prescribe the medication in those states and patients can't fill prescriptions at pharmacies.  

"If a state law bans abortion broadly, that includes medication abortions," Elisabeth Smith, director of state policy and advocacy at the Center for Reproductive Rights, told MedPage Today.

But abortion bans and state laws seek to punish abortion providers or people who assist them, not the person seeking the abortion (there's reason to believe this might change in the future). For now, people living in the most restrictive states can still order pills from an overseas pharmacy, including Aid Access. However, the pills could take awhile to arrive and potentially put the person past the point of pregnancy for which the medication is safe and effective (about 10 weeks).

Peter Dazeley/Getty Images

The fate of medication abortion pills in Republican-leaning states centers on mifepristone, the first pill given in the two-dose regimen of medication abortion. Because the US Food and Drug Administration approved mifepristone as a safe and effective way to end a pregnancy over 20 years ago, states shouldn't be able to restrict it, the US attorney general's office argued the same day Roe was overturned. (Misoprostol, the second pill, is used off-label for abortion and miscarriage treatment. It's also used to treat health conditions such as stomach ulcers.) 

Whether this federal regulation (and the FDA's stamp of approval) supersedes state laws will need to be decided. Cohen said this is likely to be determined by the Supreme Court as "one of the first post-Dobbs cases."

"It's unclear whether that's going to be a winner of an argument, to be perfectly honest," Cohen said.

Last year, the FDA extended a pandemic-era rule that allowed patients to get medication abortion pills through the mail, instead of requiring them to be prescribed in person. This was seen as a victory for the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists and other medical groups, which viewed the in-person requirement as unnecessary for a medication that's safe and effective in early pregnancy.   

But states have their own requirements for medication abortion, and providers licensed in Montana can't prescribe pills to patients who travel over from a restrictive state like South Dakota, NPR reported.

Read more: Worries About Post-Roe Data Privacy Put Spotlight on Period Apps  

Ectopic pregnancies can't result in a delivery and require medical treatment. Symptoms can start with typical pregnancy signs, including a missed period, but can progress to abdominal or pelvic pain, vaginal bleeding, weakness and more. 

Svetlana Gustova/Getty Images

Can states ban treatment for high risk pregnancies? The HHS says no, but doctors say state laws are restricting care.  

Even though the most restrictive states banning abortions leave room for some degree of medical emergency, practicing physicians need to decide where the medical emergency line is – and risk prosecution if a state sees it differently. 

This month, the story of a 10-year-old girl who was raped and pregnant and who traveled to Indiana from Ohio, where abortion is banned around six weeks without exception for rape or incest, made headlines. Not only was the physician publicly questioned by Indiana's attorney general on whether she followed state law, but Ohio Attorney General Dave Yost said in the aftermath that the girl should've been able to legally get an abortion under the state law's medical emergency exemption. Ohio's OB-GYNs disagreed. 

"It states specifically 'medically diagnosed condition,' and as far as I can tell, adolescent pregnancy is not a medically diagnosed condition that's listed," Dr. Jason Sayat, a Columbus OB-GYN, told the Ohio Capital Journal. 

The Department of Health and Human Services reminded physicians and hospitals that if they want to keep their Medicare agreement and avoid "civil penalties," they must treat pregnant patients and provide abortions if necessary as required under the 1986 Emergency Medical Treatment and Labor Act. The EMTLA, now blocked in Texas, outlines certain life-endangering pregnancies that doctors must treat regardless of state law, including ectopic pregnancies, preeclampsia and complications of pregnancy loss.

But that narrow line of abortion exceptions for medical emergencies given by states like Wisconsin is what's troubling Dr. Jennifer McIntosh, a maternal-fetal medicine physician practicing in the state. While Wisconsin's attorney general said he wouldn't enforce a ban, physicians there stopped performing abortions because the state has a pre-Roe criminal statute that prohibits most abortions. The "save the life of the mother" abortion exception language in that law can leave out health conditions which may not be an immediate emergency but can become one down the line. 

"Some of what we do is to prevent emergencies from happening," McIntosh said. "To have to wait for an emergency to actually appear puts your patient's life at risk."

The treatment for an ectopic pregnancy is termination, because terminating the pregnancy is the only safe outcome when an embryo grows outside of the uterus, typically in a fallopian tube. Without treatment, the fallopian tube is likely to rupture, which can lead to internal bleeding and death. But some laws, like one in Texas, specifically restrict medications including methotrexate, which has led to access problems for people who are pregnant as well as people who are taking methotrexate for another health reason. 

Complicating confusion and risk over how abortion bans will affect treatments for ectopic pregnancies is the fact that more rare types of ectopic pregnancies exist, including ones where the pregnancy is growing inside a C-section scar or other area outside the safety of the main cavity of the uterus -- but still technically in the uterus. These rarer kinds of ectopic pregnancies are also life-threatening, and may be more difficult to diagnose and treat as such in a state that bans abortions with an emphasis on the pregnancy being in the uterus.

Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

States are not prosecuting people who have abortions (yet)

Current state laws -- both those in effect and those in limbo in court -- prosecute other people involved in an abortion, not the person who's pregnant. 

But the health impact may be already felt when a doctor is hesitant to treat patients, or pharmacists are reluctant to fill a prescription for mifepristone before interviewing a woman to ascertain whether her pregnancy is already ended and her situation is in line with state law.

"Even in these straightforward cases of basic OB/GYN practice, the laws leave providers questioning and afraid," Dr. Carley Zeal, an OB-GYN in Wisconsin, told The New York Times. "These laws are already hurting my patients."

Aside from hesitancy among health care providers, physicians also fear that worries people have about being prosecuted for having an abortion or miscarriage will stop patients experiencing complications from any kind of pregnancy loss from seeking care. 

That's because it was already happening, before Roe was overturned. According to the National Advocates for Pregnant Women, there were over 1,700 arrests or prosecutions of women from 1973 (when Roe became law) to 2020 where their pregnancies were the focus of the case against them. 

So will doctors report you if they suspect you had an abortion? 

"The vast majority of health care professionals will not do that, because that's not caring for their patients," King said. But, she added, "I'm sure there's a very small, but unfortunately detrimental, minority who might." 

Your current access to birth control shouldn't be impacted by the overturn of Roe v. Wade. However, there's reason to believe that could change in the future.

Carol Yepes/Getty Images

Birth control is still protected under the Affordable Care Act

Right now, IUDs, birth control pills and other birth control methods are legal in all 50 states. And they should also be covered at no out-of-pocket cost for those covered under the Affordable Care Act. The right to birth control is protected under two Supreme Court rulings: Griswold v. Connecticut (1965) and Eisenstadt v. Baird. (Another Supreme Court Case, Burwell v. Hobby Lobby Stores, chipped away a little of that protection, however, finding that some corporations are exempt for religious reasons.) 

Plan B or "morning after pill" brands are also not included in abortion bans, because they will not end an existing pregnancy. Most health plans should also cover them. 

Legislators in Missouri last year voted to block taxpayer funding for IUDs and emergency contraception, casting doubt that all birth control devices will be protected indefinitely, at least in some states. The claims of legislators like Paul Wieland, a Republican state senator in Missouri, are that anything that has the potential to disrupt a fertilized egg's implantation into the uterus is an abortifacient. 

The medical community has been clear that IUDs and emergency contraception do not cause abortions and will not end an existing pregnancy. Copper IUDs work mostly by causing a chemical change in the sperm and egg before they meet, according to the World Health Organization. Hormonal IUDs like Mirena work mostly by thickening cervical mucus so sperm can't reach the egg, and can also prevent ovulation. Plan B and similar pills likely won't work if a person has already ovulated, meaning the chances of it stopping implantation are currently understood to be slim.

Nevertheless, unlikely occurrences or instances where a fertilized egg may be prevented from implanting into a uterus could be called into question in future court cases.

Read more: Could a Post Roe v. Wade World Impact Your Access to Birth Control?   

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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Best Home Security Systems for Renters in 2022

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Best Home Security Systems for Renters in 2022

Home security systems can give you peace of mind, but if you're renting a home or apartment installing these might not be possible. A professionally installed system -- and some DIY systems with more invasive installations -- might not be feasible given owner or landlord restrictions. If you don't want to drill into walls, fiddle with doorbell wiring or pay to install a permanent system in an apartment you're renting, there are plenty of home security systems for you.

To put together our list of the best home security systems for renters, we tested every major security system on the market, from professionally installed systems to DIY ones. In general, the professional systems don't make much sense for renters because they tend to rely on permanent fixtures and sometimes come with contracts that last longer than a lease. The better picks for home security systems in a rental property are going to be cheaper DIY products. Here are the best systems for the job.

Read more: 7 Home Security Tips for Apartment Dwellers

Wyze

Wyze's home security system is ridiculously cheap -- even after the price bumps many of its products saw in early 2021. The company's home monitoring system costs $80 and comes with two door/window sensors, a motion detector, a keypad and a base station with a built-in siren -- plenty of devices for an apartment. You can also get a year of professional monitoring for $60. That'll give you a 50% discount on the system (which rounds out the price at $100).

In short, Wyze's is a solid system with a really appealing price tag -- and it's cheaply and easily scalable for a variety of apartment or home sizes (adding a camera, for instance, will set you back as little as $30). The big drawback? It doesn't have cellular backup, which means if the power or internet go down, you lose the professional monitoring and remote alerts. The system will still work locally, though, so if someone breaks in while the power is down, the siren is still going to sound.

Read our review.

Chris Monroe/CNET

Ring has a ton of baggage, but its 5-piece home security system is a solid midrange DIY security option for renters. It comes with a door/window sensor, a motion sensor, a keypad, a range extender and a base station. While it's not as good as its Ring Alarm Pro system, many renters don't need a new router -- let alone a mesh Wi-Fi system.

What I like most about this Ring Alarm for renters, though, is that it works with the Ring Peephole Cam, which is one of the only video doorbells that works with those peepholes you often find in apartment buildings. Like Wyze, Ring unfortunately doesn't have cell backup.

Read our review.

Chris Monroe/CNET

SimpliSafe is our favorite DIY home security system for renters for several reasons: it's reliable, well-priced and has no significant weaknesses (that's right, you have cell backup here, unlike the two systems above). That said, SimpliSafe does have one shortcoming for renters in particular: its video doorbell is wired-only. For many renters without doorbell wiring (or without permission to fiddle with it), that takes the video doorbell off the table.

If you're not worried about the video doorbell, though, SimpliSafe offers fantastic packages at prices that, while slightly higher than the systems above, beat out direct competitors like Abode. Packages start at $244, but you can regularly find them on sale on the SimpliSafe website for significantly less -- at the time of writing, for instance, the base package only costs $171.

Read our review.

Security Systems for Renters Compared

Our Picks	Wyze Home Monitoring	Ring Alarm (5-piece)	SimpliSafe (8-piece)
Price	$100	$160	$179
24/7 Professional Monitoring Fees	$10	$20	$17.99
System Hardware	2 door/window sensors, 1 motion detector, 1 keypad, 1 base station with built-in siren	1 door/window sensor, 1 motion sensor, 1 keypad, 1 range extender, 1 base station	1 base station, 1 keypad, 4 entry sensors, 1 motion sensor, 1 panic button
Setup	DIY installation	DIY installation	DIY installation
Extra Features	24/7 professional monitoring, remote alerts, false alarm prevention, no long-term contracts, Alexa and smart home integration	Mobile notifications and remote alerts, integrates with Alexa and other Ring products	Cell backup, 24/7 professional monitoring service, customizable system, Alexa and Google Assistant integrations, 24-hour battery
Review Score	8.4	7.5	8.5

How we test home security systems

For each system we test, we install it ourselves just as you would at home, or we have an installer come set it up in the case of professional systems like ADT and Comcast Xfinity. Once it's installed, we spend at least a week testing the system and all the device-by-device features. Our ranking puts a priority on value, but also takes into strong consideration the quality of hardware, service and general user experience -- including how easy it was to set up and the frequency of false alarms. For more robust information on any of the recommended security systems above, please read the full reviews.

If you want to read more about our review process, check out our in-depth article on how we test home security systems and services.

Home security for renters FAQs

Can you install a security system in a rental?

You can add a home security system to your rented apartment or home, but a DIY, noninvasive system (one that does not require drilling into walls or doors, or rewiring a doorbell, for example) will often be your best bet. What's more, professionally installed security services may come with a contract that extends past the length of your lease, further complicating your next move.

Before purchasing a system or signing up for a service, check your lease agreement to make sure any major changes, like the installation of a home security system, are allowed in your apartment or home.

Should I put a security camera in my apartment?

An exterior camera, unless reserved to private spaces like your back patio, is generally not recommended for apartments because it will routinely capture footage of people in public spaces. Additionally, many lease agreements do not allow for the exterior installation of devices such as cameras or satellite dishes.

On the other hand, there are many reasons why you may want to add a security camera or two inside. Smart home cameras are great ways to monitor kids from another room or pets when you're out of the house. As for security, a camera may capture images or video of intruders and send you an alert. Furthermore, the presence of a security camera is often enough to deter a potential burglar, so consider placing a camera somewhere it can be easily seen by others.

How can I secure my apartment?

Installing a home security system that monitors entryways and the interior of your apartment is one of the best ways to secure your dwelling, but there are other measures you can take. It's a good idea to keep any valuables out of sight, especially from windows (where someone may see them from the outside).

The buddy system can be a free but invaluable way to enhance your apartment's security: Make friends with your neighbors, communicate suspicious activity and ask them to keep an eye on your property while you keep an eye on theirs.

You may also want to consider renter's insurance to minimize losses in the event of a burglary or other security breach. To learn more about home security for apartments, check out these home security tips for apartments.

 CNET's bests for home security:

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Best mental health apps for teens best mental health apps 2021 best mental health apps uk best mental health quotes best mental health ehr softwares best mental health movies best mental health apps best mental health quotes best mentalist episodes best mental health charities best mental health facilities in us

Best Mental Health Apps for 2022

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Best Mental Health Apps for 2022

Therapy can be a daunting step to take, but it is important for us to treat our mental health appropriately, so we can lead better lives. There are a number of mental health apps that can go a long way in helping you relieve stress, bring down your anxiety or even help you take the first steps in going to therapy and talking to someone. Research shows that mental health apps are also a great way to improve your well-being and keep tabs on your wellness journey.

There's a lot to love about mental health apps -- the variety, the affordability and the features. They also bring mental health resources to people who otherwise couldn't get help due to finances, disabilities or location. But they're not all created equal. Not all mental health apps are backed by research or clinical insights. With between 10,000 to 20,000 wellness apps out there, it can be difficult to find the best option for you. We've pulled together a curated list of our top choices to make the process easier.

Read more: Best Online Therapy Services

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Talkspace takes our top spot for the best therapy app because of its 24/7 access to medical professionals. It's an affordable online therapy option that gives you more than just helpful guides and videos to watch. You have access to a licensed therapist wherever and whenever you need them. Talkspace is a great option for someone who is not comfortable going into an office or would rather have therapy appointments online. 

A 2020 study found that messaging a therapist through Talkspace reduced feelings of anxiety and depression. A different study said that using Talkspace's voice, video and text features also reduced symptoms of post-traumatic stress disorder, or PTSD. Note that the researchers of the studies had connections to Talkspace.

Within the app, you have access to video, text and audio chat to communicate with your therapist. However, users note there is a 5-minute cap on audio messages. 

Talkspace is significantly more expensive than other apps on the list. However, if you're looking for an app that allows you to talk to a therapist directly, it may be worth the price. 

Price: Plans start at $65/week. 

Talkspace best features:

• Talkspace offers therapy with a mental health professional. Not all mental health apps offer this feature.
• You can change therapists. 
• Access to treatment and Talkspace features 24/7. 

Things to consider:

• Since it offers therapy, Talkspace is more expensive than other apps. Which may put it out of reach for some.
• You can use insurance to pay for Talkspace, but some users have noted customer service wait times and other insurance troubles. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Calm is one of the most well-known mental health apps in the wellness space, with over 100 million downloads. We consider Calm one of the best meditation apps because of its comprehensive offerings, including breathing techniques and calming exercises. 

The Calm app is pretty easy to navigate and organized well. When you open the app, you are prompted to take a few deep breaths. Then you select what your main goals are so that your recommendations are tailored to your needs. You also can track statistics within the app, such as how long you have been using the app or how many sessions you've completed. 

The free version of Calm is limited, but there is a 7-day trial that helps you decide if it's right for you. After the trial, you have to pay the premium to access the 100 guided meditations, sleep library and masterclasses, which is $14.99/month or $69.99/year. If you are ready to commit to Calm, it's good to go with the full-year option since it comes out to just under $6/month instead of the full $15. Or you can always stay with the limited free version.

Price: $14.99/month or $69.99/year

Calm best features:

• Calm is simple to use and the exercises are easy to follow. It's a great mental health app for beginners. 
• Features of Calm include breathing exercises, sleep programs, relaxation and mindfulness techniques. 
• You have access to sleep stories narrated by celebrities like Harry Styles or Laura Dern.

Things to consider: 

• Calm offers a free version of the app, however, it is limited. You have to pay to access the full features. 
• You do have to enter payment upfront when you sign up, meaning you have to remember to cancel if you decide it's not for you.
• Reviews say that the app has troubles and customer service can be difficult to work with. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

The Moodfit app has a lot to offer, and you can choose how to use the app. You can track sleep, nutrition, exercise and more during your wellness journey. Moodfit uses tools and sessions that help you assess your feelings, recognize negative thinking and change it. 

The Moodfit app has pretty standard navigation. The "notices" tab at the bottom is what I would consider the educational section. There is a lot of good information available, like how your thoughts influence your behavior and feelings, but you will have to take the time to actually read it. Other apps have a more interactive experience with imagery, videos and readouts. 

Where I think where Moodfit really shines is its analytics. With the easy-to-interpret charts, you can spot patterns in your mood and your activities. You also can track your mood down to the hour -- analytic views available are monthly, weekly, daily and hourly. Many apps do have analytics, but Moodfit puts a lot of intention behind helping you find patterns in your behavior and moods.

Price: $8.99/month

Moodfit best features:

• With Moodfit, you can adapt what the app offers based on your goals. Daily reminders and exercises will keep you on track.
• Moodfit has some of the best analytics available in the mental health app game.

Things to consider:

• Moodfit does not offer communication with a therapist.
• The basic version of Moodfit does not include all that the app has to offer. The premium version is $8.99/month, which is a few dollars cheaper than the average cost of the best mental health apps without therapist access. 

Moodfit's home page features your progress and goals. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Sanvello is the best mental health app for stress relief thanks to its full meditation library, guided journeys, health tracking and cognitive behavioral therapy tools. I was pleasantly surprised when using Sanvello. For me, it was a lesser-known option on the list, and it did not disappoint. You can choose what goals you want to target -- reduce anxiety, feel happier, build confidence, etc., and you can select as many goals as you want.

One of my favorite parts of the Sanvello app was how connected it felt when using it. Like other apps, there is an education section. What's different is how it is presented. Sanvello uses text, videos and audio for a multimedia experience that is much easier to follow and digest. This comes down to preference, as some people prefer to read at their cadence. 

The basic version of Sanvello is free. However, there are additional features that the app offers -- like coaching and guided journeys -- that are not available on the free version. There is a premium option of $8.99/month and a premium plus coaching option for $50/month which offers a coach with live connection capabilities. 

Price: $8.99/month or $50/month

Sanvello best features:

• You can choose which areas you want to target, which allows for personalization. 
• Unlike other apps, Sanvello has an option to connect with peers who are going through the same things. 
• Sanvello does have a therapy subscription that connects you with a licensed therapist. 
  

Things to consider: 

• Unfortunately, the therapy option is not available in all states, and if not covered by insurance, it can get expensive. 
• There are limitations to the free app. You have to pay a subscription to access advanced features. 

The Sanvello app allows you to select which goals you want to target. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Happify is a free mental health app that focuses entirely on your mood and helps relieve anxiety. Developed by mental health professionals, Happify's strategies are derived from cognitive behavioral therapy that helps you learn how to recognize and reorient negative thinking. 

Happify had the most thorough questionnaire when signing up. I was asked about relationships, employment and medical conditions to help personalize the service. As the name suggests, Happify focuses on positivity and tries to make your journey fun with engaging games. With the relaxation and mindfulness techniques Happify offers, you can boost your mood and relieve anxiety. 

The app has a different navigation setup than other apps. Instead of having the navigation bar at the bottom, there's a three-bar dropdown you have to tap to bring up the menu at the top left, making it just a little more difficult to find things. 

Price: $14.99/month or $139.99/year. You also can purchase "lifetime access" for $499.99. 

Happify best features:

• Happify was developed by therapists. It's one of the most robust mental health apps on the list. 
• You can personalize how you use the app by selecting what your goals are. 
• When using Happify, you have access to a community forum or you can keep your account private. 
• Happify also has a digital coach feature available. 
  

Things to consider:

• The free features available are limited. To access the digital coach and advanced features, you have to pay for a subscription. 
  

Various tracks are available from Happify.

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

MindShift is a free mental health app specifically designed to target anxiety. Categories within the app are broken down into general worry, social anxiety, perfectionism, panic and phobias. This allows the user to personalize which type of anxiety they want to work through.

As the name suggests, MindShift targets your mindset, meaning that it helps you identify what is making you anxious and helps you redirect your thinking to positivity. When you open the app, you're prompted to rate your daily anxiety score to track over time. The app is pretty easy to use and easier to navigate than other options simply because there is less available. One tool that stood out was the "thought journal" that helps you work through what you're worried about and how to overcome negative thoughts. "Coping cards" are also available to help you ease anxiety in the moment. 

MindShift is much more interactive than other apps, as it relies on you to add anxiety scores and type responses to get the best experience. Other apps are mainly reading-based. If you want the best out of MindShift, you need to interact with the app.

Price: Free

Mindshift best features:

• MindShift is a very interactive app that allows you to choose which type of anxiety you target. 
• It's a free app that used psychotherapy techniques. 

Things to consider:

• Because it's free, you have a limited number of entries a day. 
• The app may have technical difficulties. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

The unique experiences of people of color are often excluded from traditional mental health resources. The wellness app industry is traditionally not inclusive and mainly focuses on experiences that white people encounter. Only one in three Black Americans get the mental health care they need. That's why Shine is the pick for the best mental health app for people of color. 

It's specially designed to target the needs and struggles of people of color, making mental health resources more accessible and inclusive. Shine offers meditations, self-care courses led by experts and monthly virtual workshops. You are also prompted to add a wellness check-in each day and are greeted with motivational messages. 

Price: $14.99/month

Shine best features:

• The topics and practices offered are focused on BIPOC mental health. This is unique to the mental health app space.
• You have access to a peer community that offers support and empowerment.  
  

Things to consider:

• Shine offers a free app version, though you will not have access to all the features offered. 
• The price is about average when compared to the other options on the list. 

Selection of choices for Shine app. 

Screenshot by Taylor Leamey/CNET

How we chose the best mental health apps

The apps included on the best mental health app list have the best features supported by research. When selecting our picks, we examined each app's user experience, features and pricing. We also read through user reviews to tease out pain points and what people value in mental health apps.

Frequently asked questions

What are mental health apps?

Who doesn't want therapy from the comfort of home? Mental health apps are tools you can use to improve your well-being. While not all offer online therapy, they're simple to use and make managing your mental health easy. Each app will vary in what it targets. For example, Calm specializes in relaxation and breathing. Moodfit focuses on tracking your mood and finding patterns. 

Mental health apps are not intended to diagnose conditions or be a replacement for therapy. Instead, they are a great tool to use for continued support daily. They offer encouragement, education and helpful activities you can use to improve several areas of your mental health.   

Read more: Tips to Find the Right Therapist For You

Are mental health apps effective?

Experts are split on the effectiveness of mental health apps. Some studies have not found "convincing evidence" that apps greatly improve outcomes related to disorders like anxiety, depression or drinking. However, other research has suggested that mental health apps have potential in managing and improving symptoms of select disorders. 

The research on the effectiveness of long-term treatment with apps is young. Most experts agree that they are a great tool to support your mental health, especially when you use them in addition to other treatment options. They are not intended to diagnose conditions and should be viewed primarily as a complement to traditional treatment options.

What are the benefits of mental health apps?

Mental health apps bring resources to those who otherwise may not have had access to them, whether because of financial standing or regional location. And while they are not a true replacement for therapy, mental health apps are a great way to self-regulate and be mindful of how you're feeling.

• Convenience: You can track your mood, talk to a counselor or read about mental health topics from anywhere. 
• Price: Mental health apps are significantly more affordable than traditional therapy. Many are available for under $20/month.
• Consistency: You want to be as consistent as possible during your wellness journey. With push notifications and props to check in, mental health apps ensure that you are being mindful of patterns in your behaviors or moods and how to meet your goals. 
• 24/7 access: With a mental health app, you can access resources whenever you need them. While some of the counselors may not reply immediately, you have access to the app's other features 24/7. 
• They can help: Wellness apps can help you achieve your goals, whatever they are. For example, they can help you recognize patterns in your mood or improve your coping skills. 

Will mental health apps be the end of therapy?

Mental health apps are great tools that supplement your experience. However, it's unlikely they would ever replace traditional therapy, even the options that offer virtual therapy. Mental health apps have limitations in crises, and there are questions about effectiveness when used alone. Mental health apps aren't the best option for everyone. While the apps are typically user-friendly, some people still prefer to meet in person and have their therapists' undivided attention. It's all a matter of preference.

Read more: What Is Cognitive Behavioral Therapy? 

Do mental health apps share your data?

With mental health apps, you can't assume that everything is protected under the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act. Mental health apps fall in a gray area. HIPAA only protects information collected by "covered entities," including healthcare providers and insurance companies. Many of the best mental health apps on the market operate without connection to covered entities, meaning your information isn't completely private. 

HIPAA applies to conversations with your therapist on an app. So you don't need to worry about what you disclose in those sessions. However, the apps' additional features -- guided meditations, CBT exercises and mood logs -- are not always kept confidential. Neither is the fact that you use a mental health app. The data you give the apps outside of therapy sessions can be sold for targeted advertising. And it's not just Facebook; your information can be shared with public health and academics for research.

Privacy will vary by platform. Make sure you read the privacy policy of each app to fully understand your protection.

Should you use a mental health app?

For many people, apps are an important tool to guide their wellness journey. While they are not a replacement for therapy, mental health apps are a great way to check in on yourself. My advice is that mental health apps are what you put into them. Many of the free ones offer helpful, educational content. But you need to take the time to read it. Others allow you to work through stressors with open-ended answer boxes. But you have to interact with the app to truly benefit from it. 

A wellness app won't give the client's relationship with a counselor that traditional talk therapy offers. And for some, that's not something they are willing to give up. But if therapy is currently out of your reach, especially due to cost, then mental health apps may be a good option. You won't get the highly personalized experience you could get with another person, but you can still learn healthy habits and skills.

The information contained in this article is for educational and informational purposes only and is not intended as health or medical advice. Always consult a physician or other qualified health provider regarding any questions you may have about a medical condition or health objectives.

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