When you hear the word ‘design’, what’s the first thing that pops into your mind? Fashionable clothes? Stylish furniture? Enviable tech gadgets?
Everyday items like these are certainly useful, and often nice to look at.
But when it comes to healthcare, design can play a crucial role. With proper design, healthcare products can make life easier, and taking care of yourself much more enjoyable.
How Curaden approaches design
For 40 years, we have been thinking carefully about the way we design our products.
For example, it’s no coincidence that the shape of our Curaprox toothbrush handle makes it effortless for people to maintain a 45° angle towards their gums, which is recommended by the best dentists.
Also, our colours have been carefully created to make even such a mundane task as brushing teeth just a little bit more joyful.
Fortunately, we are not the only ones who think about design when it comes to helping people look after their health.
Let’s take a look at some companies and products that got us excited recently:
1. Tableware for people with cognitive and/or motor impairment
There are things that demand design in order to look good, and then there are things that would be pointless without it. Eatwell is a perfect example of the latter.
Created by Sha Design Studio, this assistive tableware set helps people with cognitive and motor impairment to eat more food and drink more liquids. Inspired by her grandmother’s struggles with Alzheimer’s, founder Sha Yao based the idea on her own personal experience.
For caregivers, even routine tasks like feeding their patients can be difficult, so Eatwell aims to make their lives easier. Based on years of research and experience, the tableware’s colourful and multi-shaped nine-piece design takes a user-focused approach.
Yao applied research by Boston University that says bright colours help patients to better distinguish food. According to the study, vibrant colours can help a person with dementia to reduce visual impairment and consume 24% more food and 84% more liquid.
Eatwell’s cups and bowls are therefore colourful, less prone to tipping over and spilling, and shaped so that food is easier to intake. Simple yet effective.
2. Personal taster for peanut allergies and gluten intolerance
Living with allergies can be a drag, but it can also be life threatening. For those affected, eating out or buying food without knowing all the ingredients can quickly turn into a serious hazard.
But just like in the Middle Ages when kings had to be wary of poisoning, people today with peanut allergies or gluten intolerance can now have their own personal ‘taster’.
Nima, the world’s first connected food sensor, takes the first bite for you and lets you know whether or not your food is safe to eat.
This ingenious device is small enough to fit into any purse, bag or pocket, and can easily remove anxiety from your plate. Just put a sample of your food into the device, wait for the result and, if safe, tuck in.
3. Instant electrocardiogram on your wrist
Health loves technology. New platforms are enabling people to become more involved than ever in their own healthcare, and to be proactive around potential threats, rather than just reacting.
With the Move ECG watch from French company Withings, you can record your own personal electrocardiogram – anytime, anywhere.
Coming to market in Q2, this analogue watch helps you keep track of your heartbeat so you’ll never miss the most common heart rhythm disorder – atrial fibrillation – which can lead to heart failure.
Just place your fingers on the watch case for 20 seconds, and an ECG will be instantly recorded and displayed in the linked app. If any irregularities are present, the results can be sent directly to your doctor.
The Move ECG also motivates you to move more and live a healthier lifestyle, all in a light and elegant housing, with no need for a chunky, difficult-to-use piece of tech.
Image & video credits
Eatwell/Sha Design
Nima
Move ECG/Withings
