Overview
The My ME-BYO Record app, developed and managed by Kanagawa Prefecture in Japan, represents a distinctive approach to public health mHealth. Since its launch in 2017, the app has logged health and medication data alongside physical activity, with a ME-BYO index added in 2020 to visualize predisease status. This retrospective study analyzes real-world app use to illuminate who engages with the ME-BYO index, how engagement relates to health scores, and what this means for regional health strategies.
What is ME-BYO and the My ME-BYO Record?
ME-BYO describes an intermediate health state between wellness and disease. The My ME-BYO Record collects self-reported data across metabolic, locomotor, cognitive, and mental resilience domains, yielding a 0–100 ME-BYO index. Higher scores signify better perceived health. While many mHealth apps are privately developed, this platform is government-run, offering a unique data source for population health insights.
Study Design and Population
From April 1, 2020, through July 31, 2023, the study included 10,239 adult users (≥18 years) who accessed the ME-BYO index at least once, drawn from a cumulative 186,972 registered users. The analysis compared one-time users with repeat users and used logistic regression to assess engagement in relation to sex, age, and domain scores within the ME-BYO index.
Key Findings
Approximately 21.5% of users were repeat users, while 78.5% were one-time users. Repeat users tended to have lower total ME-BYO scores, with cognitive function notably lagging behind. Conversely, repeat users showed higher locomotor function and were generally older than one-time users.
Age emerged as a strong predictor of engagement: older users were more likely to return to monitor subsequent ME-BYO index changes. The cognitive dimension’s lower scores among repeat users suggest that those with cognitive concerns may find repeated feedback and self-monitoring a useful tool. Meanwhile, better locomotor function among repeat users implies that physical activity may reinforce ongoing participation, as physically active individuals often engage with health-tracking apps to manage daily behaviors.
Implications for Health Strategy
The findings highlight a gap in sustained engagement with a public health mHealth tool. For Kanagawa Prefecture, improving retention may require targeted features for older adults and those with cognitive vulnerabilities, alongside clear demonstrations of how ME-BYO trajectory informs health decisions. Integrating the app more deeply into regional health services, offering personalized feedback, and reducing barriers to continued use could enhance its value as a population health instrument.
Limitations
The study population skewed toward adults over 40, which may limit generalizability to younger groups. Self-report bias is possible in the ME-BYO index components, even though some measures (e.g., Mini-Cog, walking speed) have validation work supporting them. The dataset lacked detailed information on comorbidities and socioeconomic status, which could influence engagement patterns. Future work should incorporate additional confounders to sharpen interpretation.
Conclusions
This retrospective analysis identifies a meaningful gap between one-time and repeat use of the ME-BYO index. By understanding who engages and why, public health authorities can tailor strategies to foster continued use, enhance behavioral insights, and ultimately strengthen region-wide health management through the My ME-BYO Record platform.
