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Getting Ready for a Grayer World

Summary: THE NUMBER OF people 65 and older is expected to more than double worldwide to about 1 5 billion by 2050 from 523 million last year according to estimates from the United Nations That means people 65 and over will soon outnumber children under 5 for the first time ever Many economists view such an exploding population of aged people not as an asset but as a looming budget crisis A Standard Poor s analysis warns that many countries are not prepared to cover the pension and health care costs of so many additional retirees national debts could grow to double their gross domestic product After all by one estimate treating dementia worldwide already costs more than $600 billion annually But researchers are betting that baby boomers unlike generations past will not go gentle into the good night of longterm care The alternate scenario older adults living independently for longer periods creating a potentially huge market for technologies and services that promote wellness mobility autonomy and social connectivity At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology s AgeLab here researchers trying to help product designers and marketers better understand older adults have created the Age Gain Now Empathy System or Agnes At first glance it may look like an elaborate jumpsuit A helmet attached by cords to a pelvic harness cramps the wearer s neck and spine Yellow paned goggles muddy vision Plastic bands running from the harness to each arm clip the wingspan Compression knee bands discourage bending Plastic shoes with uneven pads for soles throw off the wearer s center of gravity Layers of surgical gloves make fingers feel awkward Aging is a multidisciplinary phenomenon and it requires new tools to look at says Joseph F Coughlin director of AgeLab Agnes is one of those tools Many industries have shied away from marketing unfashionable demographic group that might doom their product with young and hip spenders Now that Americans are living longer and more actively companies are recognizing this market s staying power Companies come to AgeLab to understand this new target audience and often learn hard truths many older adults don t like products like big button phones that telegraph agedness The reality is such that you can t build an old man s product because a young man won t buy it and an old man won t buy it Professor Coughlin says The idea is to help companies design and sell age friendly products much the way they did with environmentally friendly products That means offering enticing features and packaging to appeal to a certain demographic without alienating other consumer groups Products ranging from wireless pillboxes that transmit patients medication use to new financial services that help people plan for longer lives already constitute a multibillion dollar market industry analysts say But there is a lot more room for growth There is an enormous market opportunity to deliver technology and services that allow for wellness and prevention and lifestyle enhancement says Eric Dishman the global director of health innovation at Intel Whichever countries or companies are at the forefront of that are going to own the category In his office in Beaverton Oregon Mr Dishman demonstrates some prototypes like a social networking system for senior housing centers already being tested Last month a group including Bank of America Merrill Lynch Pfizer Johnson Johnson and Aegon said it had formed the Global Coalition on Aging to help governments and industries better handle the age boom Companies are starting to think about how they can be age friendly much the same way they have been thinking about how they could be environmentally friendly over the last couple of decades says Andy Sieg the head of retirement services at Bank of America Intel and General Electric are jointly developing technologies to help older adults stay independent They are already selling the Intel Health Guide a home monitoring system that helps doctors remotely manage patients care There s just one obstacle Because of ageism Mr Dishman says many retailers aren t ready to make space for agefriendly products and many companies don t even want to develop them Life enhancement technology for boomers is a chicken and egg problem he says Is the market going to take the first plunge or are companies going to create technologies without knowing whether we can sell it He has been trying to have the U S Congress put the issue on the national agenda The European Union he says has committed more than one billion euros to study technology and aging What do we need to do for aging and gray technology to have the same urgency and investment that global warming and green technology have Mr Dishman asks Ken Dychtwald the C E O of Age Wave a consulting organization has been trying to rebrand aging He s coined a word middlescence to convey later life as a transformative stage like adolescence in which people have free time and an increased interest in trying new experiences The first of about 76 million baby boomers in the United States turned 65 in January Their sheer numbers may attract industries that had earlier shied away Mr Dychtwald said In 2009 for example baby boomer households in the United States spent about $2 6 trillion according to estimates from AgeWave based on a consumer expenditure survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics If you are a Fortune 100 company or an inventor in a garage where are you going to find another demographic that is that large that robust in spending power that open to new possibilities and that underserved Mr Dychtwald asks There s nothing to rival it So far very few companies have applied creative intelligence to understanding older adults and developing technologies services experiences and even new careers for them Rather than viewing maturity as an opportunity to sell people a golf membership or an arthritis medicine he says since a person who turns 60 has another 20 years why not create educational programs whereby people can be motivated to go out learn new skills and have an encore By NATASHA SINGER CAMBRIDGE Massachusetts An M I T lab designed Agnes an old agesimulating suit to help companies get a feel for their older customers needs Retailers have been slow to embrace products for the elderly Reaching for groceries turns challenging in a suit that simulates old age C J GUNTHER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES Copyright 미주한국일보 koreatimes com 무단전재 및 재배포 금지 THE NUMBER OF people 65 and older is expected to more than double worldwide to about 1 5 billion by 2050 from 523 million last year according to estimates from the United Nations That means people 65 and over will soon outnumber children under 5 for the first time ever Many economists view such an exploding population of aged people not as an asset but as a looming budget crisis A Standard Poor s analysis warns that many countries are not prepared to cover the pension and health care costs of so many additional retirees national debts could grow to double their gross domestic product After all by one estimate treating dementia worldwide already costs more than $600 billion annually But researchers are betting that baby boomers unlike generations past will not go gentle into the good night of longterm care The alternate scenario older adults living independently for longer periods creating a potentially huge market for technologies and services that promote wellness mobility autonomy and social connectivity At the Massachusetts Institute of Technology s AgeLab here researchers trying to help product designers and marketers better understand older adults have created the Age Gain Now Empathy System or Agnes At first glance it may look like an elaborate jumpsuit A helmet attached by cords to a pelvic harness cramps the wearer s neck and spine Yellow paned goggles muddy vision Plastic bands running from the harness to each arm clip the wingspan Compression knee bands discourage bending Plastic shoes with uneven pads for soles throw off the wearer s center of gravity Layers of surgical gloves make fingers feel awkward Aging is a multidisciplinary phenomenon and it requires new tools to look at says Joseph F Coughlin director of AgeLab Agnes is one of those tools Many industries have shied away from marketing unfashionable demographic group that might doom their product with young and hip spenders Now that Americans are living longer and more actively companies are recognizing this market s staying power Companies come to AgeLab to understand this new target audience and often learn hard truths many older adults don t like products like big button phones that telegraph agedness The reality is such that you can t build an old man s product because a young man won t buy it and an old man won t buy it Professor Coughlin says The idea is to help companies design and sell age friendly products much the way they did with environmentally friendly products That means offering enticing features and packaging to appeal to a certain demographic without alienating other consumer groups Products ranging from wireless pillboxes that transmit patients medication use to new financial services that help people plan for longer lives already constitute a multibillion dollar market industry analysts say But there is a lot more room for growth There is an enormous market opportunity to deliver technology and services that allow for wellness and prevention and lifestyle enhancement says Eric Dishman the global director of health innovation at Intel Whichever countries or companies are at the forefront of that are going to own the category In his office in Beaverton Oregon Mr Dishman demonstrates some prototypes like a social networking system for senior housing centers already being tested Last month a group including Bank of America Merrill Lynch Pfizer Johnson Johnson and Aegon said it had formed the Global Coalition on Aging to help governments and industries better handle the age boom Companies are starting to think about how they can be age friendly much the same way they have been thinking about how they could be environmentally friendly over the last couple of decades says Andy Sieg the head of retirement services at Bank of America Intel and General Electric are jointly developing technologies to help older adults stay independent They are already selling the Intel Health Guide a home monitoring system that helps doctors remotely manage patients care There s just one obstacle Because of ageism Mr Dishman says many retailers aren t ready to make space for agefriendly products and many companies don t even want to develop them Life enhancement technology for boomers is a chicken and egg problem he says Is the market going to take the first plunge or are companies going to create technologies without knowing whether we can sell it He has been trying to have the U S Congress put the issue on the national agenda The European Union he says has committed more than one billion euros to study technology and aging What do we need to do for aging and gray technology to have the same urgency and investment that global warming and green technology have Mr Dishman asks Ken Dychtwald the C E O of Age Wave a consulting organization has been trying to rebrand aging He s coined a word middlescence to convey later life as a transformative stage like adolescence in which people have free time and an increased interest in trying new experiences The first of about 76 million baby boomers in the United States turned 65 in January Their sheer numbers may attract industries that had earlier shied away Mr Dychtwald said In 2009 for example baby boomer households in the United States spent about $2 6 trillion according to estimates from AgeWave based on a consumer expenditure survey by the Bureau of Labor Statistics If you are a Fortune 100 company or an inventor in a garage where are you going to find another demographic that is that large that robust in spending power that open to new possibilities and that underserved Mr Dychtwald asks There s nothing to rival it So far very few companies have applied creative intelligence to understanding older adults and developing technologies services experiences and even new careers for them Rather than viewing maturity as an opportunity to sell people a golf membership or an arthritis medicine he says since a person who turns 60 has another 20 years why not create educational programs whereby people can be motivated to go out learn new skills and have an encore By NATASHA SINGER CAMBRIDGE Massachusetts An M I T lab designed Agnes an old agesimulating suit to help companies get a feel for their older customers needs Retailers have been slow to embrace products for the elderly Reaching for groceries turns challenging in a suit that simulates old age C J GUNTHER FOR THE NEW YORK TIMES Copyright 미주한국일보 koreatimes com 무단전재 및 재배포 금지

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