The high-tech times we live in have all sorts of repercussions on our day to day life. We are always connected with the fast moving world on the internet; smart phones keep track of our daily life and alter our lifestyle. Of course some of these influences can be considered negative ones, but app developers are actually here to help us in any ways possible.
The fight between Public Health and the Tobacco Industry has never been more up front than it is today. We all know the effects of smoking and how it can potentially cause harm to an individual, yet people seem not to care or think that it can’t happen to them, thus ignoring messages like:
- “smoking causes cancerâ€
- “smokers die youngerâ€
- “smoking leads to infertilityâ€
- “smoking can cause strokeâ€
We all have that grandparent or great uncle that lived to be 85 yet smoked for 65 years. Those cases can be considered extreme luck!
As evidences are compelling an even stronger case against smoking the “Gadget and Apps†department are coming up with more and more solutions. I bet every smoker tried a nicotine patch, an electric cigarette and yet still smoke.
So, leaving the old-school quitting methods behind and focusing on the new, high tech  apps for smartphones are here to help smokers quit.
ICoach: – free for IPhone and Android!
ICoach is an online digital health coaching platform that helps individuals stop smoking. Digital coaching, or the process of behavioral change in an online environment, is based on pioneering research, practical clinical experience and the expertise of psychologists and communication experts.
The platform, which is free of charge, is available in 23 official Eu languages. ICoach has been proven effective. More than 30% of people who used ICoach quit smoking.
An interesting thing about this app is that it does not only target people ready to quit! It also aims to inform those who are not yet ready to stub out their last cigarette. This makes ICoach unique. The user is presented with a brief questionnaire that determines his or her stage in a five phase stop smoking process. The questionnaire assesses the user’s behavior attitude and motivation.
The five ICoach phases are:
- I do not plan on stopping
- I should stop, but I am still in doubt
- I will stop smoking shortly
- I have just stopped
- I have stopped for some time now
ICoach guides the user through a series of comprehensive interactive tools. It also provides tailored feedback, advice, techniques, tasks as well as mini tests. ICoach sends the user daily emails-tips as reminders and for motivation. The user is able to record his progress in a diary.
At the end of each month, ICoach compiles a consultation report. The report gives an overview of the user’s progress until they reach the final phase.
So what are you waiting for? Sign up and feel better, look better, be happier, and start spending your cigarette money on something more rewarding and fun.
Maybe you should try the app out, after all it’s free, and it’s designed to help.
Think about it while you finish the cigarette that you lit up while reading this article.
In the end, it’s your decision if you plan to quit or to keep smoking, and you may choose any method that suits you for giving it up. ICoach is just an alternative.
