An App a Day for LGBT Health

Now that the U.S. Supreme Court has made marriage equality the law of the land, researchers are hoping to learn more about the inequalities LGBT people face in health care. A new app, Pride Study, requires just 30 minutes of participation a year, and the data it gathers would inform the first large-scale, long-term health study of the LGBT community.

LGBT health advocates are optimistic about the potential of tapping into the iPhone’s massive user base to gather this vital data. The app, developed by the University of California, San Francisco, asks participants to answer demographic surveys, complete activities, and share health data.

There’s a real lack of evidence-based information on community health,” researcher Juno Obedin-Maliver said in a UCSF press release. “The current landscape for LGBT health is less of a map and more of a signpost in the desert. We aim to create that map.”

The Pride Study app is based on ResearchKit technology, launched last March, which relies on information collected by iPhone sensors and user surveys to conduct research on diabetes, breast cancer, asthma, cardiovascular disease, and Parkinson’s disease. Pride Study researchers hope to assess the impact of HIV/AIDS, smoking, cancer, obesity, and mental health issues in the LGBT community.

Previously, small-scale studies have hinted that members of the LGBT community are more susceptible to conditions such as depression and anxiety and are at higher risk of suicide. Scientists are hoping the app will help them learn more about those issues so that they can be addressed.

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