Technology and advances in science are rapidly changing the field of medicine. But no matter what we can cure or alleviate, it’s only effective if you take your dosage on time. Instead of trying to remember every pill, use apps and services to remind you.
Please make sure you see a doctor to get prescriptions. While there are safe ways to research health issues online, you still shouldn’t take any medication without consulting a medical professional. In fact, the wrong medication might cause more problems than you foresee.
My Therapy (Android, iOS): Simplest Pill Tracker, With History Logs
Those who want a clean, light and simple app should first check out My Therapy. It is the app for anyone who wants to add the name of a medication, measurement, lab value, activity, or symptom check.
You don’t get to add other information in My Therapy, such as what the pill looks like. There are other apps for that. My Therapy keeps it much simpler, with just a name and an alarm. Keep taking your medicine and doing your other health checks, and the app will record all the data.
You can see your weekly history for free, but monthly and annual history needs a premium account. You can also add friends and doctors to the app, generate email reports, and do a lot more. But honestly, if you want all those features, the premium version of MediSafe might be better for you. My Therapy is ideal as a free pill reminder.
Download: My Therapy for Android | iOS (Free)
MediSafe (Android, iOS): Track Your Pills, and Others’ Dosage Too
Veteran technology journalist David Pogue conducted the most extensive review of pill reminder apps. After checking out 47 different apps, he thinks MediSafe is the best, so who are we to disagree?
MediSafe does everything right. It’s simple to use and to set up, you can add the pill’s shape and color too, and get that reminder at the right time. You can even snooze reminders to pop up again an hour later, in case you’re not able to take your pills at the exact time of the reminder.
But MediSafe’s best part is that it allows you to add “dependents” and their dosage. So if your loved ones are bad at taking their medicine on time, create a profile for them and add their schedule. You can even install MediSafe on their phone and link both your apps, so you can set up the alerts, while the reminder notifications pop up on both phones.
Some of MediSafe’s features are only available in the premium version, and if you are taking charge of medicines for your entire family, it would be worth it. But nonetheless, try the free version first.
Download: MediSafe for Android | iOS (Free)
Mango Health (Android, iOS): Earn Points and Rewards
Gamification is the process of trying to lead your daily life as if it were a game. So you earn points for doing the right thing and lose points for messing up. Gamification can change your life for the better, so Mango Health is bringing it to the process of taking medicine on time.
Once you set up adding your medicine, it will send reminders like any other such app. Confirm and get points every time you take the medicine on time or even do other healthy habits like checking your blood pressure, drinking water, etc. You also get a neat history of every task you have or haven’t done. The points you earn can be encashed in gift cards, or donated to charitable organizations. These are just some of the features that make Mango Health one of the best medicine reminders for iPhone and Apple Watch.
For American users, Mango Health also warns you when you add two medications that can react with each other. But this works only with American drugs, mind you.
Download: Mango Health for Android | iOS (Free)
ID My Pill (iOS): Identify Pills With a Photo
Don’t you love it when technology makes your life easier in a magical way? If you have a pill that you can’t identify, you don’t need to go to the pharmacy anymore. Just point your phone’s camera at it.
ID My Pill is exactly what you expect it to be. Put a pill on a blank surface, take a photo with the app, and it will give you possible names for what the pill could be. The smart app basically identifies the shape, color, and imprint of the pill, and matches it with a database. You won’t always get a 100% match, but you can narrow down what it is with a little common sense.
It’s one of the easiest ways to identify different types of drugs, especially since most websites make you type out the text, shape, and color of the pill. Unfortunately, none of the Android apps we tried were good enough to pass this test, so this feature is for iPhone users only, for now.
Download: ID My Pill for iOS (Free)
Any.Do or Todoist (All Platforms): Regular Reminder Apps Still Help
Specialized pill tracking apps are great, but they are completely dependent on your phone. I didn’t find any app that was available on a phone as well as a computer. At best, some of them offered email reminders, but can you imagine how annoying that would make your inbox?
That’s why you should still consider using a plain old to-do list or reminder app, like MakeUseOf favorites Any.Do or Todoist. When you’re at work and put your phone on silent, it would be nice to get a quick notification in Chrome or a desktop app that tells you to take your pills.
Use any app you want, but make sure it works across all the platforms you use. You want to get a notification when it’s time to take your pills, and not miss out because your phone wasn’t at hand.
Before You Buy Medicines Online
Much like everything else, you can now purchase medicines online and have them delivered to your home. You don’t need to go to your local pharmacist. But while this is convenient, it is fraught with its own risks. Before you buy medicines online, read these safety tips.
Image Credit: yacobchuk1/Depositphotos
Read the full article: 5 Medicine Reminder Apps to Identify Pills and Remember to Take Them
