Using Femtech To Track Period Cycle
It’s no secret that we don’t like to be caught unaware when it comes to that time of the month. This is why we're advised to keep track of our cycle from the first day we get our period.
Apart from helping you prepare for your next period, keeping track of your cycle also gives you vital information about your body, especially your menstrual health. By tracking your period cycle, you remain aware of any slight changes in your reproductive health that you would otherwise have missed.
However, the downside of manually tracking your periods yourself is that the human brain is not as reliable as we seem to think it is. Plus, it can get pretty monotonous and exhausting to have to collect, tally, and record your menstrual data by yourself. This is where the efficacy of femtech comes in.
What Is Femtech?
Femtech is an abbreviation for female technology and is used to refer to different health software that is specifically tailored to women's needs. It uses technology to support and improve women's health. This new subcategory of technology was accidentally named by the founder of Clue, Ida Tin in 2016 and since then, it's taken the industry by storm.
Femtech doesn't just include period and ovulation trackers. According to Ida Tin, it also includes sex toys and apps that improve your sexual life, pelvic exercises, fertility, and so much more. At its core, femtech was created strictly to cater to women’s wellbeing.
Examples of femtech include:
Menstrual cycle tracking
Health and wellness
Pregnancy
Pelvic and sexual health
Family care and planning
Hormones and hormonal disorder
Fertility and birth control
Menstruation and period care products
Benefits of Using Femtech
The importance and benefits of femtech cannot be overlooked and they include:
1. It serves as an educational tool for everyone
It's not just women that can benefit from having information about women's health, men can also gain a thing or two and become more aware of women’s health and issues.
2. It builds confidence in women
Women can now feel confident in their bodies and have a better understanding of how it works. It allows women to know that what they feel and what they are going through is completely normal, and there are countless women all around the world probably going through the same thing.
3. It serves as a platform for women to feel heard
Finally, women have a space made primarily for them where they can talk and be heard. Femtech serves as a platform for women all over the world for issues affecting them to be brought to attention and addressed.
4. It socialises girls from a young age
This is a great medium to teach girls about their body, how it functions and changes from an early age. Girls whose parents don't have time for this or are too embarrassed to talk about these new overwhelming experiences can now have a place where they can feel safe to pour out their feelings and learn in a way that's both fun, creative, and safe.
Some of The Best Femtech Apps
1. Flo
This is one of the most widely used femtech apps. It is able to work as a pregnancy tracker and calculator, ovulation, and period tracker. It not only does this but tells you important information about your period, what its flow means, and how to manage menstrual pain, heavy bleeding, and mood swings, among other things.
You can sync it with a health and fitness app to monitor nutrition and lifestyle habits to help the prediction of your cycle. With this app, every person who menstruates will have a better time handling it.
For the first two months, it may miss your period by a day or two but once it is in sync, it is quite precise.
Pros
A smart way to monitor your period amongst other things
The app is very easy to use
It gives accurate productions
Cons
You need to pay for a premium account to access some features
2. Bellabeat Period Diary
This app tracks your cycle and period, it also has an ovulation tracker and calculator that is very helpful even if you're trying to avoid getting pregnant. It is very informative about PMS symptoms, moods, phases of your cycle, and hormones.
Bellabeat Period Diary is a wellness companion that has fitness, nutritional, and mindfulness recommendations to keep you healthy during your period. There are up to a thousand articles on women's health.
It can be synced with your phone calendar. A password protection feature is available but not only that, the icon is labelled ‘P.D.’ for even more privacy. There is also a reminder for when your period will start.
Pros
It is free
There are no ads
It promotes privacy
Cons
New updates may make the app difficult to use
3. Clue
This is another very popular femtech app used by millions all over the world. It is available in fifteen languages and can track period and fertility. It calculates and predicts your period and fertile period.
You get to find the pattern of your period, symptoms, and moods. You get to also learn how your menstrual cycle affects your body. There are several more categories that can be tracked including sex, hair, and sleep.
The app has an alarm system that reminds you to take pills such as oral contraception and also gives an explanation of how these pills may affect fertility.
Pros
It is more than a period and fertility tracker
It provides so much information about health
Cons
You have to subscribe to Clue Plus to access the Clue birth control and other features
4. Oky
This app is usually referred to as the world's first-period tracker created for adolescent girls. It is made in a way that's colourful and easy to use with simple explanations about puberty, menstruation, and the menstrual cycle. It is a guide to managing menstruation, a mood tracker, and so on. It can also be beneficial to adults as there is a feature for family planning.
There is also one extraordinary feature beneficial to girls, it allows you to write about your day and feelings. It is a fun and creative way to educate girls about their period, body, health, and nutrition.
5. Eve Tracker
This app not only tracks your menstrual cycle, it acts as a best friend who gives you customised messages reminding you when your period is about to start and all the things you will to get prepared
It tracks your sexual activities and moods and also gives explanations for certain feelings such as cravings and mood swings. It tracks your sleep and gives you a list of healthy habits to improve your sleep.
You can also take sex quizzes to become a sexpert and improve your sex life with their informative posts.
What Shouldn't You Do With Your Femtech App
1. Do not solely use period trackers to determine your fertility window. There are countless ways to do this including urine tests. This is just a way of saying do not place all your eggs in one basket.
2. Do not skip reading the privacy policy. There are many femtech apps out there that share their users' data with the outside world. Usually, they give you a chance to opt out of those if you do not want it so it's important to go through the privacy policy.
3. If you're not very comfortable with sharing certain information, you shouldn't feel like you have to.
4. Period trackers are not a legitimate form of birth control. You still have to consult with your doctor for anything pertaining to your health including options for contraceptives.
5. Similar to the point we made above, femtech is not a replacement for doctors and health practitioners. While it's beneficial to know the symptoms of certain health problems, you shouldn't take only their opinion to heart. Still consult with your doctor on every issue.
Conclusion
Femtech has been in the industry for less than twenty years and all the things it's been able to achieve with women is incredible. Given more time and resources, they could completely revolutionise the way women's health and fitness is viewed worldwide.