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4 free apps to help navigate cold and flu season
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Got a cold? Want to avoid the flu? There are apps for that. - photo by Chandra Johnson
Got a cold? Want to avoid the flu? There are apps for that.

Anyone armed with a smartphone can take the edge off cold and flu season this year with a handful of apps to help avoid areas where sickness is reported or, when the worst happens, finding the lowest-price prescriptions nearby.

1. Sickweather

Free for Apple and Android

Sickweather is a free app (Android and Apple) that allows users to self-report illness and map a variety of illnesses to see if a lot of people are sick nearby. It also tracks social media for reports of illness, with an algorithm that differentiates between "The Doc says I have bronchitis" vs. "I've got Bieber fever." Sickweather maps most common ailments from allergies to the common cold to whooping cough and alerts users when they're in an area with a high concentration of illness.

2. Flu Near You

Free for Apple and Android

Flu Near You is an app that focuses on tracking flu cases all over the U.S. The beauty is that unlike a lot of sickness mapping apps, Flu Near You is anonymous. Early detection is key in flu prevention, and the interactive map tracks nearby flu cases so users can take extra precautions like using extra hand sanitizer or even working from home.

Designed by epidemiologists at Harvard, Boston Children's Hospital and other health professionals, this app also looks to prevent widespread flu outbreaks by tracking the information the app collects.

3. Iodine

Free at the Apple store

For people who are feeling sick or have children, differentiating symptoms can be time-consuming, and health care costs often mean people wait until they're sure they're sick before visiting the doctor. Iodine can help with that. Iodine has a wide breadth of information on common illnesses as well as over-the-counter and prescription drugs for various ailments.

4. GoodRx

Free for Apple and Android

Unfortunately, some people will become sick every cold and flu season, sometimes needing prescriptions to help them fend off viruses. To get the most for their dollar, developers have come up with GoodRx, an app that finds the lowest price for prescriptions at nearby pharmacies.
Its toxic: New study says blue light from tech devices can speed up blindness
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A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers. - photo by Herb Scribner
It turns out checking Twitter or Facebook before bed is bad for your health.

A new study from the University of Toledo found that blue light from digital devices can transform molecules in your eyes retina into cell killers.

That process can lead to age-related macular degeneration, which is a leading cause of blindness in the United States, according to the researchs extract.

Blue light is a common issue for many modern Americans. Blue light is emitted from screens, most notably at night, causing sleep loss, eye strain and a number of other issues.

Dr. Ajith Karunarathne, assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry, said our constant exposure to blue light cant be blocked by the lens or cornea.

"It's no secret that blue light harms our vision by damaging the eye's retina. Our experiments explain how this happens, and we hope this leads to therapies that slow macular degeneration, such as a new kind of eye drop, he said.

Macular degeneration is an incurable eye disease that often affects those in their 50s or 60s. It occurs after the death of photoreceptor cells in the retina. Those cells need retinal to sense light and help signal the brain.

The research team found blue light exposure created poisonous chemical molecules that killed photoreceptor cells

"It's toxic. If you shine blue light on retinal, the retinal kills photoreceptor cells as the signaling molecule on the membrane dissolves," said Kasun Ratnayake, a Ph.D. student researcher working in Karunarathne's cellular photo chemistry group. "Photoreceptor cells do not regenerate in the eye. When they're dead, they're dead for good."

However, the researchers found a molecule called alpha-tocopherol, which comes from Vitamin E, can help prevent cell death, according to Futurism.

The researchers plan to review how light from TVs, cellphones and tablet screens affect the eyes as well.

"If you look at the amount of light coming out of your cellphone, it's not great but it seems tolerable," said Dr. John Payton, visiting assistant professor in the UT Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry. "Some cellphone companies are adding blue-light filters to the screens, and I think that is a good idea."

Indeed, Apple released a Night Shift mode two years ago to help quell blue lights strain on the eyes, according to The Verge. The screen will dim into a warmer, orange light that will cause less stress on the eyes.