Period tracking apps are n’t anything new , but latterly , a few have been subject togreater scrutinyregarding theirprivacy , and efficacy — especially those marketed as contraceptive method . The latest isFemm , which a Guardianreporthas find out to be fund by anti - abortion campaigns .
According to the Guardian , the app receives most of its funding from private donors . Among them is theChiaroscuro Foundation , a charity that ’s primarily back by wealthy businessmen . The Polymonium caeruleum van-bruntiae has ahistory of donatingto pro - life , spiritual familiarity , and evangelization . One of its father , Sean Fieler , is a conservative philanthropist andvocal pro - life advocatewho the Guardian reports as stomach politician against birth control and abortion . As the composition detail , Fieler not only sit on the Femm Foundation ’s board , but his Polymonium caeruleum van-bruntiae also collapse $ 1.8 million to the app over the past three years .
That alone does n’t necessarily make Femm a “ bad ” app . After all , it make sense that anti - abortion advocates would funnel money into innate family provision technology . But additional detail in the Guardian ’s reporting reveal where Femm stupefy its medical adviser , and it ’s a bit troubling . Two of the app ’s medical consultants hail from a Catholic university in Chile and are not licensed to practice in the United States . Again , a on the face of it innocuous detail , except when you look at both of the doctors in question have ties to anti - abortion organizations , the Catholic Church , and have written papers attempt to linkCatholicism with science .
Femm’s website clearly states it’s meant to help “avoid” or “achieve” pregnancy.Screenshot: Victoria Song (Femm Health App)
This , in combining with Femm ’s marketing and where it gets its money , is worrying . In Femm ’s app description , it distinctly states :
Are you looking to track your menstrual cycles and symptom , get significant or avoid pregnancy ? The FEMM app is more than just a period of time tracker : it provides you with cutting sharpness science that help oneself you keep data track of your health , translate what is going on with your physical structure , flag potential issues , and connect with a connection of doc and nurse to cater you the just health precaution .
Phrases like ‘ cutting edge science ’ , and ‘ avert pregnancy ’ should be met with healthy scepticism . The benefit of track apps like this is increasing sentience among women of their own bodies , but wading into areas like contraception is risky . Take Natural Cycles . Though this app did getFDA approval to commercialize itself as a contraceptive , it ’s recentlycaught some flackfor a number of unintended pregnancies . That ’s because noninvasive charting methods likebasal body temperatureand chartingcervical mucus(the method acting advertise by Femm ) can be prostrate to human error and normal divergence from char to woman . That ’s fine if you ’re trying to get pregnant without resorting to expensive discussion like intrauterine insemination ( IUI ) or in vitro impregnation ( IVF ) . But when it do to contraceptive method , good old rubber and hormonal nativity ascendancy like pills , rings , and IUDs still have a higher efficaciousness pace . TheCenters for Disease Controllists fertility - awareness - based methods as the least in effect , with 24 out of every 100 woman experiencing unintended maternity . Another good example of is theDaysy , a thermometer that lay claim its scientific study foretell birth rate in 99.4 percent of case . Not only was that debunk in aBuzzFeed News report , the journal that published it finally retracted Daysy ’s report entirely .
Also troubling , the Femm Foundation ’s internet site is littered with phrases that ostensibly disgrace the benefits of hormonal parentage control due to potential side effects . For example , the site’sFAQclaims that depression “ can be related to hormone - imbalances and FEMM protocol can assist to diagnose and plow this . ” While it is true that giving birth ascendance can cause side effects , such as depression , they can also regulate atypical periods and handle symptom of more serious conditions like endometriosis . Furthermore , natural depression can havemany causesaside from hormone and while tracking can help you become more aware of bodily trends … you should plausibly still consult with your own MD who is conversant with your whole medical history before trust an app . This is reliable for some other conditions Femm ’s FAQ claims to help , including acne , and obesity .
“ The info on their website appears mislead when read with a decisive optic , ” says Dr. Paula Castaño , an associate professor of obstetrics and gynecology , at Columbia University Irving Medical Center . “ There are many places where they could state that wheel unregularity would make their method less efficient and yet they do n’t . ”
Castaño also note the entropy on Femm ’s website overemphasized the importance of checking hormone levels — which can variegate greatly during the track of a day — as well as leaned into the negatives of antifertility use without mentioning any positive .
The site lists awhite paperto give it some additional credenza — but a white paper is not the same affair as a clinical study . The former can be save by a company or organisation to inform consumer about an issue and intimate possible root . The latter really requires trials and match review from other expert and scholar in the field . While the website also face a listing of other publication , none of them actually involve match - refresh clinical trials testing the efficacy of Femm itself among users or compared to other selection in the market . Again , this highlight a worrisome tendency where period apps could be commercialize themselves as backed by scientific discipline , when the reality is the purported “ inquiry ” is n’t ironclad or in Femm ’s case , may come with a political agenda . As the Guardian ab initio reported , and Gizmodo confirm , calling the Femm Foundation will get you the World Youth Alliance , ananti - abortion group . Both the WYA and Femm app’scontactpagesalso lead you to the same address and phone number .
As of this written material , Femm has a 4.8 rating in the App store from over 1,000 exploiter . Likewise , it has a 4.5 paygrade in the Play Store from over 1,200 user . And sure , the app itself boast a clean and simple design . However , when you consider its marketed as also helping to avoid pregnancy with less - than - stringent science , feature in question literature on its website , and is fund by anti - abortion group — that raises a few scarlet flags about how trustworthy the armed service is . Gizmodo reached out to the Femm Foundation for comment but did not straightaway receive a reply .
[ Guardian ]
ContraceptionWomen ’s health
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