Category: Health and Wellness

Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

Backbone supports you in the quest for better posture

It’s incredible to think that for every 15° of forward neck tilt, as much as 10-20 pounds of pressure is placed on the spine, neck, and back. This is not only a detriment to posture and overall well being, but puts people one step closer to looking like Quasimodo — a fate no one wants.

With bad posture so commonplace, it’s no surprise more and more crowdfunding campaigns are addressing the issue head on. The latest to do so is the Backbone, a pair of connected shoulder straps that not physically supports better posture but also reminds users to straighten up through notifications and vibrations.

Continue reading “Backbone supports you in the quest for better posture”
Categories
Connected Objects Health and Wellness

Flo Bluetooth thermometer brings touch-free readings to a fever pitch

In the proximity of an uncomfortable, crying kid who can’t explain their discomfort, the only things parents want to do is determine if a fever is to blame. With the Flo, the connected Bluetooth thermometer makes it extremely simple to get that reading almost instantly.

Flo is one connected product that works even without a phone. Its most striking quality is its non-invasiveness. Users need only to point Flo’s sensor at, say, a forehead and be within 1cm to get an accurate temperature reading. Temperatures are divided into three colors for instant understanding: green for normal temperatures, red for fever, and purple for chills, all of which can be audibly read aloud for the busy, multi-tasking parent. Flo can also be pointed at objects, as well, so parents can determine if a bottle of milk is too hot or bath water is too cold.

Continue reading “Flo Bluetooth thermometer brings touch-free readings to a fever pitch”
Categories
Chargers/Batteries Health and Wellness

Tylt Vu Pulse adds heart rate, wireless charging to Pebble Time

Heart rate tracking is one of the most helpful features of some fitness activity trackers and smartwatches including the Apple Watch. But it’s not a feature (yet anyway) on the Pebble Time smartwatch. The need to plug in the watch to charge it, meanwhile, can be a major hassle.

Tylt Vu Pulse is an add-on, protective case for the Pebble Time and Pebble Time Steel that adds heart rate monitoring, as well as wireless charging, to those smartwatches. The case connects to the accessory port of the watches and syncs with Android and iOS mobile devices using Google Fit and Apple Health.

Continue reading “Tylt Vu Pulse adds heart rate, wireless charging to Pebble Time”
Categories
Health and Wellness Kids/Babies Wearables

AllerGuarder wristband lets you guard against kids’ allergies

editors-choiceKids’ food allergies are a significant cause of concern for many parents –- especially when their children are away from home, be it at school, at a party, or elsewhere. AllerGuarder offers parents a solution to that dilemma.

patent-claimedAllerGuarder is a smart wristband that broadcasts kids’ allergies via a low-frequency Bluetooth transmitter that is built into the wearable device. The wristband constantly broadcasts a 50-foot radius alert and anybody within that zone who has downloaded the free Android or iOS app is automatically cautioned about a child’s allergies on their smartphones or tablets.

Continue reading “AllerGuarder wristband lets you guard against kids’ allergies”
Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

QuietOn earplugs uses noise cancellation to tune out the world

Earplugs are handy devices to have when trying to catch some shut-eye while traveling — especially on a noisy airplane — or even while at home if somebody is making a racket in another room or snoring in the same bed. But not all earplugs are created equal. For starters, some are more comfortable than others and some block more noise than others.

patent-claimedQuietOn earplugs use the same kind of active noise cancellation technology found in many higher-end headphones, but does away with the wires. There’s also no buttons. The earplugs switch on automatically when removed from its small charging and carrying case. They work for up to 50 hours on one charge, so QuietOn can work for an entire flight regardless of the destination or most delays.

Continue reading “QuietOn earplugs uses noise cancellation to tune out the world”
Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

ALEX gives you the straight talk about your posture

Forward Head Posture, Text Neck — most people don’t know about these very real conditions. The advent of the smartphone revolution brought these harbingers of chronic neck and back pain along for the ride, which is why maintaining proper posture even with all these devices floating around is more important than ever.

NAMU’s ALEX is a Bluetooth-connected personal posture coach designed to hang from the ears and sit behind the neck for optimal analysis.
A three-axis accelerometer and pivot sensor ensure accurate measurements are sent back to the companion smartphone app with which users can manage the frequency and intensity of alerts and track progress. Avatar Mode also allows for real-time posture management with an on-screen representation to make sure everything works smoothly.

Continue reading “ALEX gives you the straight talk about your posture”
Categories
Health and Wellness Wearables

The FitPal keeps tabs on your ticker, hearts you a lot

In no other time in history has the heart been so well documented. This is due to the glut of wearables on the market, most of which do a decent job of monitoring heart rate. The biggest problem is usually their size and effectiveness: most are ungainly with questionable methods of data generation, leading consumers to search for smaller, more dependable alternatives.

The FitPal is a thin, flexible Bluetooth LE-enabled patch worn 24/7 on the torso or chest that keeps constant tabs on the heart. It looks at everything from heart rate variability to heart rate zones and resting heart rate, interpreting all this information to monitor a person’s calories burned, steps taken, and skin temperature along with larger attributes like exercise readiness stress levels, and sleep quality, making it a jack-of-all-trades when it comes to wearables.

Continue reading “The FitPal keeps tabs on your ticker, hearts you a lot”
Categories
Health and Wellness

PediGlide your way to a less sedentary workday

The idea of sedentary sickness continues to gain track. The idea that sitting for eight hours a day adversely affects the body and increases the likelihood of heart problems and diseases like colon cancer is fueled by the largely inactive lifestyles most people lead as part of their daily routine.

While attempts to address the problem by incorporating a bit of standing have come in the form of campaigns such as the Stance Desk and  Stealth Rising Desktop, the PediGlide asserts that they at best introduce minor relief and other forms of back problems.

Continue reading “PediGlide your way to a less sedentary workday”
Categories
Connected Objects Health and Wellness

Wing helps those with asthma soar by catching early warning signs

Asthma inhalers are necessary items for those who suffer from that lung disease. But those medications can’t help users detect the early warning signs of an asthma attack.

Wing is a pocket-sized sensor that enables those who suffer from asthma and other lung ailments to monitor and manage their conditions, and also lets them know when an attack is coming, according to its Indiegogo campaign. The device can also be used by those suffering from chronic obstructive pulmonary disease, chronic bronchitis, emphysema, cystic fibrosis, pulmonary fibrosis and other respiratory conditions, its maker says. Wing is made up of a small white device that the user breathes into.

Continue reading “Wing helps those with asthma soar by catching early warning signs”
Categories
Aquatics Health and Wellness Smartwatches/Bands

Surfers ride the fitness band wave with the Glassy Zone tracker

Although it seems that fitness and activity trackers exist for every sport, their conquest is not quite complete. Curiously, there’s nothing out there specifically for surfers which means an entire population of athletes that don’t have a choice at all when it comes to wearables.

GlassyPro’s Glassy Zone is that wearable device specifically designed with these board enthusiasts in mind. Its Fitbit band-like exterior houses a set of three LED lights for different notifications. Glassy Zone covers a wide range of variables so that users don’t have to fill their wrists up with different bands.

In conjunction with a companion iOS or Android app, Glassy Zone tracks sleep, monitors forecasts and keeps an eye on UV levels to ensure users received healthy amounts of sun. When it comes to actual surfing, the band tracks distance, time, speed and the actual conditions of both the weather and the waters at the time, all saved for review later on.

Continue reading “Surfers ride the fitness band wave with the Glassy Zone tracker”