When we're researching the latest fitness trends, health innovations, and ways of using technology to promote wellness, one of our favorite sites to turn to is Greatist. Described as a health and fitness source for the young, savvy and social, Greatist aims to provide fun, informative, helpful articles on how to better improve fitness, health and happiness for the busiest of folks.
Recently, Greatist's Happiness Editor (talk about a dream job title) Shana Lebowitz put together a list of the 24 Biggest Health & Fitness Innovations of the Future and we were instantly floored. Yes, we want to be able to print our meals, wear clothes that regulate our body temperature, and remedy heartbreak!
Here are our top 12 favorite health and fitness innovations from the list:
By 2017…
3D Meal-Printing
Just don’t salivate on the computer: Engineers at The Massachusetts Institute of Technology have developed the “Digital Fabricator Concept,” a prototype for a machine that prints three-dimensional meals. An electronic Ratatouille, the printer whips up hot and cold dishes that correspond to users’ specific nutritional requirements. One order of PB&J? Talk about a printer jam.
Better School Lunches
Shrimp and scallop ceviche may be unrealistic, but it’s likely the next few years will bring big changes in the way kids eat in public schools. While Congress voted down the latest proposal to improve school lunches in November 2011, the U.S. Agriculture Department has been pushing to change the nutritional requirements for years. Maybe they’ll also have to break the news that pizza doesn’t count as a vegetable.
Hi-Tech Gear for All
LeBron’s not the only one who gets an all-star workout. In the next few years, fitness trainers will start giving the general public the pro treatment, according to trainer Noam Tamir. The ViPR’s a good example: It’s a training tool designed to improve coordination, speed, and agility. And the Alter-G anti-gravity treadmill allows athletes to decrease the amount of body weight they run with. Guess professional athletes aren’t so fancy, huh?
Hi-Tech Health Care
Nearly 26 million Americans suffer from diabetes— but how many of them have smartphones? In June 2011, AT&T launched DiabetesManager, a program that lets people with diabetes upload info like blood sugar levels and photos of wounds and submit them to their physicians for immediate review. According to Dr. Sherry Pagoto (http://www.greatist.com/Sherry-Pagoto/), in the next few years, patients will likely be able to use digital technology to get real-time professional feedback for a variety of other health problems.
Videoconferencing Therapy
Here’s one way to overcome boundaries. Recently, videoconferencing has become more popular among psychologists, psychiatrists, and other mental health professionals. Using web services like Skype, patients can get immediate help from a therapist miles away. (Hopefully the problem isn’t a technology addiction.) Videoconferencing may improve mental health treatment particularly in rural areas where there aren’t as many psychologists as in cities.