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AARP Innovation Labs Finds Useful Tech for Older Americans

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BETTER WAYS TO AGE

AARP Innovation Labs finds useful tech for older Americans

Each year, AARP’s Innovation Labs, through its AgeTech Collaborative program, sorts through hundreds of new products or services meant to help us age healthier and happier, then gets behind the most promising ones to help bring them to the public faster. Start-ups receive experienced help to develop their products. So far, AARP has invested in roughly 50 of the companies. The aim is not simply to see a financial return, but to provide older adults with modern, useful and accessible products designed to help improve their daily lives. Here’s a cross section of recent partnerships.

Casana

What if a trip to the bathroom could save your life? The Heart Seat by Casana is a toilet seat that measures blood pressure, blood oxygen and heart rate. The goal is to spot health concerns early. The seat sends the data to a secure dashboard, which enables patients to share their health trends with their primary care physicians or cardiologists.

Mighty Health

This app aims to be the first all-in-one exercise, nutrition and wellness program for older adults. Find recipes and cooking videos to help lower cholesterol, workouts that go easy on the joints, and even a chance to demystify the world of mindfulness and reap the benefits of yoga. Mighty Health also connects users to a virtual community where members share their progress and concerns, creating an in-it-together feeling.

Flowly

Virtual reality (VR) worlds can trigger the benefits of deep relaxation without the use of prescription drugs, studies say. Flowly lets you get lost in those worlds. The headset allows you to travel through cherry blossoms, deserted beaches and deep green forests. Flowly guides you through breathing exercises while biofeedback sensors monitor your heart rate and respiration via Bluetooth so you can track and manipulate the rate at which your body is relaxing. The effects produced by Flowly have been tested in trials and proven to help ease chronic pain and anxiety.

XRHealth

This program takes telehealth to the next level, offering the full scope of a physical therapy clinic in your living room. That’s done through XRHealth’s own metaverse—a virtual environment that you can enter by using a virtual-reality or augmented-reality headset. Meet with your licensed physical or occupational therapist regularly on video calls to establish and update your treatment plan, then enter the 3D world where you take part in guided exercises and interactive games that work your body and mind. Within this metaverse, you can join VR support groups where you share experiences with the avatars of other community members. The Food and Drug Administration has approved XRHealth’s medical applications, and it is covered by Medicare.

Trust & Will

Create your will online through Trust & Will’s platform without hiring a lawyer. The site lets you determine how your assets will be distributed after your death, and how your end-of-life care will be managed. AARP members get a 10 percent discount on state-specific estate plans that start at only $159 for a will and $599 for a trust.

Beeyonder

Beeyonder provides live and interactive virtual tours of popular travel destinations around the world. It allows you to revisit a place you love or make new unforgettable memories somewhere else. Spend the morning at the Egyptian pyramids and the afternoon walking through the turrets of a Scottish castle. Beeyonder was founded by Brittany Palmer, a bilateral amputee who has overcome many challenges and whose mission is to help others overcome obstacles to in-person traveling. Private tours are available individually or as packages.

Goalsetter

Goalsetter is a family saving, investing, financial education and smart spending platform that protects user privacy with the latest cybersecurity features. You can set chores for unlocking allowances, award money for taking part in financial literacy quizzes, and obtain debit cards that have limits on how money is spent. Families can set up recurring contributions to finance goals like vacations.

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