(Credit: Yuriy Maksymiv, Shutterstock / Yuriy Maksymiv)

Some habits are just annoying, like eating with your mouth open or biting your nails. But others can be detrimental to your health and those around you, like smoking and excessive drinking.

Because habits develop over time, they also take time to break. First you'll need to recognize just how out of hand they've become, and then recognize triggers, set achievable goals, measure improvement and seek additional support. Whether you're looking to successfully quit smoking, drinking, eating sugar, messing around on your phone, staying up all night or wasting money or time, these apps are a great first step to creating change.

SEE: 5 best quit smoking apps for Android and iOS

1. Smoke Free - Quit Smoking Now

Smoke Free (download for iOS and Android) takes advantage of 20-plus unique and proven techniques to help you quit smoking. Log cravings, uncover patterns for when and where they increase and learn how to handle them -- all within the app.

After a while, you'll be pleased to see how long you've been smoke-free, how many cancer sticks you've spared yourself, how much coin you've saved and how much vitality you've regained as an ex-smoker.


2. Stop Drinking - Andrew Johnson

Alcohol can create both chemical and emotional cravings, and the Stop Drinking (download for iOS and Android) app helps you tackle both.

If you need help cutting down or quitting altogether, but find it difficult to stop reaching for that drink every time you're sad or stressed, the Stop Drinking app's relaxation, hypnotherapy and positive suggestion and visualization tools can help you cope with your emotions in healthier, more lasting ways.


3. 7 Day Sugar-Free Detox

Sugar can be a real mood booster. But the weight gain, increased susceptibility to diabetes and heightened risk of heart disease that comes from a diet composed of too much refined or processed sugar is no laughing matter.

7 Day Sugar-Free Detox (download for iOS) helps eliminate the addiction to this crystalline substance by ridding your system of it with a No-Sugar Plan. If you'd prefer to continue enjoying the sweet substance in a healthier way, you can always opt for the Low-Sugar Plan, which includes natural sugar from fruit.

To help you along, the app provides healthy and detoxifying recipes full of real, whole, fresh foods like leafy greens, vegetables, seaweeds, seeds and healthy fats, proven to reduce sugar cravings; grocery shopping lists; lifestyle advice and more.

Stick to the program and enjoy less of a sugar dependency, weight loss, improved skin and even improved energy and mood.


4. Moment - Reduce Screen Time

It might seem ironic to you that we recommend you download yet another app to be on your phone less, but get over it.

Moment (download for iOS) encourages you to pull away from your screen by showing you how much time you're picking up your phone, how much time you're spending on it and which apps you use the most. Moment also coaches you to use it less and establishes screen-free times to keep you off of it.


5. Sleep Cycle alarm clock

Sleeplessness is the worst, especially the next day when you're tired, moody and unfocused.

Sleep Cycle alarm clock (download for iOS and Android) helps combat chronic sleep issues by helping you track your sleep and providing a detailed analysis to help you improve your sleep hygiene.

The app also includes an intelligent alarm clock that wakes you during your lightest sleep phase, so you awaken feeling rested.


6. Mint

Mint (download for iOS and Android), one of the most popular money-management tools, makes budgeting simple.

Connect your bank accounts, credit cards and bills and get a breakdown of what you're spending along with a smart budget and saving opportunities in the secure app.


7. Timebound - The Deadlines App

If you're a procrastinator, then the easy-to-use, intuitive and well-designed Timebound (download for iOS and Android) app is for you.

Don't delay downloading the app that helps you meet deadlines by showing you a countdown-style clock for each one. Timebound will also send notifications in advance to keep you on track.


FOLLOW on Twitter for all the latest app news.

Read more

Joshua is an editor for CNET's He covers the mobile tech and apps that power our lives and interviews celebrities about their favorite apps. Previously, he worked as an editor at Healthline and and as a contributing writer for Mac Directory, MacAddict, SF Weekly, SF Examiner, and SF Chronicle.