Remember all those stories about how sitting is as bad as smoking a pack of cigarettes (or is that not sleeping enough)? With the standing desk trend reaching generic proportions, a new crop of consumer and employer wellness companies and collaborations have jumped into the anti-sedentary, pro-movement fray. Here are a few of them.
The Wurf Board
The trouble with standing at a desk is that it’s rough on your feet. And often, it’s not even entertaining. JumpSport, which has built a business on trampolines, has turned its attention to the relatively staid world of the office. It wants to take standing desk foot support and dial things up a notch with an adjustable air spring platform. The design is intended to support some movement and even some exercises. A campaign on Kickstarter launched last week is more than halfway through its goal and has received support from 480 backers. They start at $190 each.
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Lumo Lift
Lumo BodyTech developed wearables imbued with sensors that can (and do) tell you when you’re slouching. The tiny patch, which attaches to a shirt or jacket, vibrates when you slouch and the companion app offers tips on how to improve your stance. It also helps users track steps taken, distance and calories burned. Although it offers Lumo Lift direct to consumers, it also markets them to employer wellness plans. The goal is to avoid lower back pain, which can undermines productivity and drive up medical costs.
A Personalized Approach to Medication Nonadherence
At the Abarca Forward conference earlier this year, George Van Antwerp, managing director at Deloitte, discussed how social determinants of health and a personalized member experience can improve medication adherence and health outcomes.
OfficeIQ
It’s one thing to stand at your desk, but how can you be sure you’re getting the benefit unless you an quantify it? An office furniture company called Humanscale joined forces with technology startup Tome to do just that through its OfficeIQ collaboration. The sensors developed by Tome are designed to detect motion, weight, and proximity, among other things. It gives employees a snapshot of their sitting and standing habits and also sends occasional prompts to stand. Although OfficeIQ also offers a dashboard to employers to see how active each of their departments are the company claims to be guided by this mantra: Don’t be creepy. That means they don’t single out employees they look at them collectively. The idea is that creating a better balance between sitting and standing time, it will produce lower healthcare costs for companies.
http://www.humanscale.com/resources/watch-listen-learn/product-highlights.cfm?thisvid=3263
