The best apps for fertility

Date: May-17-2017Trying to get pregnant can be one of the most stressful milestones in life. Every 2-week wait after potentially conceiving can seem like a lifetime and can feel unbearable when the test comes up negative once again. However, there are options to assist with the process, with smartphone apps being one tool to help identify your most fertile time of the month.

Fertility apps can help you identify the time of the month that you are at your most fertile.

Pregnancy results from a process that has a number of steps. Problems with one or many of these steps can lead to infertility.

Infertility is common. In the United States, around 6 percent of married women between 15 to 44 years of age have trouble becoming pregnant after 1 year of trying to conceive. Based on certain factors, doctors may recommend treating infertility with medicine, surgery, intrauterine insemination (IUI), or assisted reproductive technology (ART), such as in vitro fertilization (IVF).

Timing is everything when it comes to trying to get pregnant. Lack of regular sex or an irregular cycle can contribute to it taking longer to fall pregnant. Fertility apps that calculate the best time to try for a baby can put some of the fun back into baby making.

Our editors at Medical News Today have reviewed fertility apps galore to bring you our top 10 choices.

Glow

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

"An app for fertility and beyond," Glow aims to illuminate health through data and empower individuals with new information about their bodies.

Glow has an elegant and sophisticated interface that tracks fertility and ovulation to help improve reproductive health. Glow records your period, 40 different health signs, mood, sexual activity, and medications, and displays the data in eye-catching charts. It is also designed to assist people going through IVF or IUI.

On sign-up, you can choose one of three journeys depending on if you are trying to conceive, avoid pregnancy, or if you are a male user. In fact, Glow reports that they are the only app that also tracks male fertility. Glow provides a mirror app to share the journey with your partner.

Ovia Fertility

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Ovia Fertility is part one of a family of three platforms that cover fertility, pregnancy, and parenting. Ovia collects multiple fertility and key health indicators, such as cervical fluid texture and mood markers, to predict your fertility window.

In addition to an ovulation calculator and calendar, Ovia Fertility provides expert articles on conception and fertility, support and predictions for people that experience irregular periods, and it even has a mode that can be set for those not wishing to conceive.

Ovia Fertility's interface is MNT's top pick for design, style, and ease of use. The colors and icons are stylish, and the home section includes a clear dashboard that instantly tells you your fertility score, cycle day, and how many days until pregnancy test.

Clue

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Clue tops our charts for being the most simplistic, sleek, and friendliest fertility app on the block. With big, bold, and colorful icons, Clue makes mapping fertility fast and fun. Clue is by far the quickest app to enter data of any of the trackers we have reviewed.

Clue provides in-depth information about the menstrual cycle, complete with scientific references, and comes with a guarantee that no flowers, butterflies, euphemisms or pink will be included in the app - ever! Clue says, "Connected mobile technology is the future of female health."

As you input data, an algorithm learns from the data, meaning that the more you use the app, the smarter it gets. The app provides many straightforward categories to track your health, such as charting your period, PMS, mood, cervical fluid, sexual activity, and personal notes. Tracking options can be added, disabled, and customized.

Kindara

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Kindara's mission is to give women the power to live their best lives, optimize their health, understand their bodies, and be in control of their fertility journey by providing them with the tools and knowledge they need. Kindara says, "Whether you're a novice or an expert, we've got you covered."

Knowledge is power. Whether you want to get pregnant, avoid pregnancy, or to simply track your cycle more precisely, Kindara's easy and hassle-free charting will help you determine if you are fertile or not each day.

Creating an uplifting community to share thoughts, feelings, and goals is central to Kindara. We were impressed by the functionality to share and compare fertility charts in their community section of 1.3 million women and the engagement, support, and reassurance provided by other Kindara users.

Natural Cycles

Android: Free 1-month trial

iPhone: Free 1-month trial

Natural Cycles is a contraceptive app backed up with two scientific studies and has been shown to have a 99.5 percent efficacy rating for use as a contraceptive method - the same as the birth control pill.

To accurately use this app, Natural Cycles recommends using a thermometer with two decimals. If you sign up to their yearly plan, a thermometer is included. Using temperature, period, and ovulation information, Natural Cycles calculates when you are fertile and should use birth control.

The Natural Cycles interface is clean and professional. You can make a choice on the set-up of the app to prevent pregnancy or plan a pregnancy. Their "Plan a pregnancy" mode tells you when you are most fertile to increase your chances of conceiving.

We liked the bold use of red and green days to indicate when you are likely and unlikely to be fertile.

Period Tracker

iPhone: Free

Period Tracker is "an elegant health journal" designed to make tracking periods, fertility, moods, and health symptoms an aesthetically pleasant experience.

Period Tracker has a glossy and minimalist interface with various visually appealing themes, fonts, and mood and symptom icons that can be switched up to match your personality or mood.

Swipe gestures are a unique feature of Period Tracker. Swiping up or down opens the symptoms and period log sections of the app, flipping your phone on its right or left sides can retrieve graphs for fertility, temperature, weight, moods and symptoms, while flicking through screens enables you to read entries as a health diary. These functions make adding and viewing your data a piece of cake!

Flo

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Flo makes menstrual cycle predictions based on regularly logged symptoms. For example, after adding mood parameters, Flo will find their connection to your cycle phase to try and improve your personalized period and ovulation predictions.

Flo's interface is fresh and smooth with contemporary icons and an attractive color scheme.

Personalized health insights are provided daily, and Flo can manage lifestyle factors, such as sleep duration, water consumption, and physical activity all in one place.

Fertility Friend

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Fertility Friend calculates ovulation, charts fertility, and is a menstrual calendar and period tracker. Charting your fertility with Fertility Friend involves observing and recording fertility signs that indicate your daily fertility status, most fertile days, and predicted periods.

Fertility Friend creates a customized fertility chart, ovulation calendar and provides personalized tips and analysis. A fountain of knowledge is at your fingertips with access to a database of Q&As, videos, and an optional online course.

One of our favorite features is the cycle and due date planner that can provide a 3- to 12-month forecast of predicted periods, most fertile days, and ovulation days.

Period Tracker Lite

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

If you are looking for a cutesy-looking app dusted with hot pink, flowers, butterflies, and sugar-sweet illustrations, then Period Tracker Lite is for you.

Period Tracker Lite has much the same functionality as the other apps, such as the ability to add notes, track symptoms, and temperature, with emoji-style icons representing various moods and emotions.

The home screen is uncluttered and plainly displays predicted ovulation, fertile window, and cycle, making following your menstrual cycle child's play.

Put simply, Period Tracker Lite is simple and cute.

Pink Pad

Android: Free

iPhone: Free

Pink Pad tracks periods, fertility and connects you to a social health network of women discussing issues such as trying to conceive, fitness, weight loss and other topics. The fundamental social aspect of Pink Pad makes the app stand out among other fertility apps.

Pink Pad provides a girly injection of pink while keeping the interface clean and sophisticated. If pink is not your thing, the default theme can be customized along with personalized cycle information and custom symptoms.

Upon registration, you can choose to use the app to conceive or to track your period. Predictive tools are provided to help plan day-to-day activities and vacations around your cycle.

Written by Hannah Nichols

Courtesy: Medical News Today Note: Any medical information available in this news section is not intended as a substitute for informed medical advice and you should not take any action before consulting with a health care professional.