Healthy Aging Experts: the Holiday Season is an Important Time to Address Issues of Mobility Loss
"Raise these conversations directly, respectfully, and with love and care" - and explore solutions that can be reliable and personalized
NEW YORK, Nov. 27, 2019 /PRNewswire/ -- Thanksgiving kicks off the holiday season, a time for gathering with family, neighbors and friends we don't often get to see. For millions of Americans, Thanksgiving and the holiday season may be the first time they notice a change in a loved one's health, including their personal mobility.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the most common disability facing older adult Americans is mobility. This holiday season, experts in caregiving and mobility are encouraging Americans to recognize these physical changes, spearhead a loving dialogue, and seek the right solutions.
"One of the most visible challenges of age, mobility is often the most overlooked," said Jed Johnson, managing director of aging services for CARF International, an independent, nonprofit accreditor of health and human services. "For many Americans, they may not know the signs of mobility loss or they may fear bringing it up to a loved one. We're doing a disservice if we procrastinate on these conversations. Mobility loss can contribute to other concerns, including social isolation and various health conditions."
Johnson encourages families to pay close attention to physical changes in a loved one's pace, coordination and balance – all early signs of mobility loss. He also stresses the importance of recognizing the more subtle signs, like changes in lifestyle and activity levels. Once the issue has been recognized, it's time to host a thoughtful and supportive conversation, and to seek the right solution with your family and even with a health care provider. "While it may be difficult to address, it is better to be pro-active verses having to react in an emergent situation," says Johnson.
"As I found in my family, the best approach to raising these conversations is directly, respectfully, and with love and care," said Denise M. Brown, founder of online caregiving community Caregiving.com. "Most importantly, remember you're not alone in facing this health challenge."
The use of a mobility aid, like a walker and rollator, can be a solution for many facing mobility loss. For Brown and her mother; it was about finding the right match.
"Recent market innovations have completely changed our perception of what a walker can represent -- what my mother had once viewed as a sign of dependence can now be a symbol of empowerment," said Brown. "For us, the choice was the byACRE the Carbon Ultralight, which recently became available in the U.S. It changed the way we viewed the role of a rolling walker. My mom is proud to show it off – she has even received compliments on it -- which means she's out of the apartment, walking more and walking safely -- huge benefits for her and us as a family."
The mindful design philosophy of the Carbon Ultralight earned byACRE the prestigious 2019 Red Dot Design Award. At just 10.5 pounds, the Carbon Ultralight was engineered to be the lightest rollator in the world, a distinguishing feature for those who use it and for those who may be in a caregiver role.
"I encourage families to look to companies and designs that are respectful of the consumer and the lifestyle they want to lead," said byACRE founder Anders Berggreen. "That was our approach to designing the byACRE Carbon Ultralight. We set out to challenge and to transform the mobility aid category by converting a product that had traditionally denoted feelings of dependence and fragility into a point of pride and personal style."
Berggreen says the mission of byACRE -- to break down the stigma related to reduced mobility and to help those it serves maintain an active lifestyle without compromise -- keeps them focused on respect for those they serve in what they create, how they market their offering, and how they engage with their consumers and listen to their feedback.
"To us, mindful design is at its best when aesthetic and functionality can work in harmony and that's how we work as a company," adds Berggreen. "It's about more than mobility; it's also about emotional connection. For example, we re-engineered the handles on the Carbon Ultralight so it enables users to stand taller and greet their surroundings with a stronger presence. This design brings the device closer to the user's core and improves their posture. There is a psychological connection between proper posture and confidence."
The byACRE Carbon Ultralight recently launched in the U.S. and Canada, at a limited rate of 25% off. Each Carbon Ultralight shipped to the U.S. and Canada is packaged for on the go ease. Users simply unbox, unfold, click and go. For more information, visit www.byacre.com/en-us/
About byACRE:
byACRE is a leading international designer and producer of stylish mobility products. We believe that rollators should be more functional, easier to use; and even stylish. Founded in Copenhagen, the heart of Scandinavian's design hub, the byACRE team combined expertise in engineering, design and visual arts for social good, setting out to create the sleekest, top performing rollators on the markets. Since 2017, our mindful designs have won some of the world's most prestigious awards in design and innovation, including the 2019 RedDot Design Award, the 2017 IF Design Award and the Danish Design Award. "byACRE" is our quality seal. It's rooted in the words 'Active' and 'Re-Habitare' – the Latin word for Back to Life. For more information, visit www.byacre.com/en-us/.
SOURCE byACRE
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