How Important Will Mobile Technology Be to 21st Century Seniors?
How Important Will Mobile Technology Be to 21st Century Seniors?
Sometime later this year the number of Americans over the age of 50 is expected to reach 100 million. That's a little less than one-third of the entire population. By 2030 it's projected that nearly 20% of the United States will be over the age of 65. As this demographic shift occurs, mobile technology will advance alongside those growing older.
The market-created call for seniors to embrace mobile technology for health and safety is undoubtedly there, but will such sales pitches be based on truth or founded on fear? Here are four areas in which mobile technology is being sold to seniors, and whether or not such gadget-based remedies have unique benefits:
MONITORING
While senior care is becoming more sophisticated, not everyone will be able to afford the luxuries of Brookdale Assisted Living and other arrangements where health monitoring is done by someone else. Mobile technology such as smartphones and tablets offer avenues in which all-in-one self-monitoring can take place on-the-go. From blood pressure to blood sugar, the benefits of staying on top of such important information about one's health will be well worth having to get used to working a touchscreen. With that said, there's no reason to invest in multiple monitoring systems when a single mobile device is certain to someday be able to do it all.
COMMUNICATION
As we get older, the likelihood that we need personal assistance with everyday activities increases. Yet, many seniors refuse such help or simply cannot afford it. If they fall alone at home, it could be days before someone realizes what happened. If an older person with dementia wanders off from family during a picnic, the consequences could be tragic. Mobile technology, specifically hand-held devices small enough to be kept on one's person at all times, will be a game changer in preventing such easily avoidable tragedies. Similar to monitoring, there's no point in buying into individualized gadgets such as Life Alert and GPS when an Android phone can do it all.
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