Hate reading glasses? A new app called Glasses Off might let you drop them by training your brain to better interpret that fuzzy print in the newspaper. Users play quick games that employ special wavy images to stimulate connections in the visual part of the brain. In a recent small study, people could read paper without reading glasses after three months of training (15 minutes three times a week), and their reading speed increased by 17 words per minute. The developers plan to launch the app for iPhones and iPads by early 2013, followed by an Android version.
Calculate your Heart Rate with your face
Cardiio, a new app for iPhone and iPad developed by Harvard and MIT researchers, can calculate heart rate by merely gazing at your face. It uses your device's camera to measure tiny changes in blood flow in your face that occur when your heart beats. Simply line up your image with the displayed target, and the app reports your heart rate in seconds; when use in a well lit environment, it's accurate to within three beats per minute of devices used by doctors. You can track heart rate over time and get info about your fitness level and estimated life expectancy. The app is available now on iTunes.
A better drug for Diabetics
Metformin has been the first line medicine for type-2 diabetes. When patients are unable to maintain blood sugar levels with metformin, sulphonylureas are added, but side-effects include too low blood sugar and weight gain, increasing the risk of heart attacks and strokes. That may change with linagliptin, anew once a day pill. Clinical trials over two years in 16 countries, including India, showed that linagliptin produced relative weight loss and lesser risk of too low blood sugar compared to sulphonylureas. There were fewer heart attacks and strokes too, but longer studies are needed.
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