A common media narrative has it that screen time in front of TV and video games is a big contributor to inaction and obesity. But people following mobile health know that video games have the potential to impact fitness in a positive direction as well. In 2010, MobiHealthNews wrote about the potential for virtual avatars to improve fitness feedback. Now, a recent study from the University of...
Redwood City, California-based startup Striiv, makers of a dedicated portable fitness device of the same name, has launched its first iPhone app, Striiv Smart Pedometer. The free app appears to have much of the same functionality as the company's $99 dedicated device. Striiv partnered with MyFitnessPal for its calorie counting features and large food database.
Striiv's dedicated device encourages...
Video games are hot in healthcare right now.
A fringe topic not too long ago, the subject gained a sense of legitimacy in July, when publisher Mary Ann Liebert Inc. introduced a new journal called Games for Health: Research, Development, and Clinical Applications. The first issue is due out this fall.
That's right, there's now a peer-reviewed, scientific journal specifically examining the role...
PHR provider Dossia unveiled the latest version of its Dossia Health Manager software this week. It will be available to existing customers in the third quarter of 2011. According to the non-profit consortium, the Health Manager now "integrates game and social dynamics, incentives and messaging to foster sustained user engagement and behavior change, thereby offering long-term value to employers...
Bayer is bringing the Nintendo DS enabled blood glucose meter, Didget, to the US next month, according to a report in BusinessWeek.
Inventor and entrepreneur Paul Wessel wanted his diabetic 4-year-old son, Luke, to stop hiding his glucose meter, so he found a way to pair one of Luke's treasured possessions, his Nintendo DS, with his least favorite. German healthcare company Bayer purchased Wessel...
