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The best wearable tech devices to help you look and feel better

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(BPT) – Wearable health technology first started in hospitals as a way to help people with injuries heal faster. Now, the trend has gone mainstream and pro-active; one in five online adults uses a wearable device, and the majority of those devices are health-related, according to Forrester Research.

“Americans are using a variety of wearable devices to help them reach their wellness goals,” says Mike Nohilly, an expert in wearable technology for Slendertone. Once, people would have needed a doctor’s visit to find out key wellness numbers like BMI or blood pressure, or needed gym equipment to monitor their heart rates while exercising. Wearable devices allow them to do all those things, and even tone specific muscle groups, at their own convenience.”

Here are five wearable health devices and how you can use them to help build fitness and better health:

* Fitness trackers — If it seems like everyone is wearing some kind of fitness tracker, you’re not imagining it. The top wearable of 2015 was a fitness tracker that shipped more than 21 million units last year and represented nearly 38 percent of the wearables market, according to International Data Corporation. Fitness trackers allow wearers to monitor key health indicators such as heart rate or calories burned. You can also use them to set and track exercise goals, such as walking a certain number of steps per day, or monitor your heart rate while exercising to ensure you reach a target zone.

* Pain relief braces — Worn like traditional braces, smart braces use neurostimulation sensors, built into the fabric, to ease pain with low-level electrical impulses. Wearers rely on the bands to help relieve joint pain from chronic conditions like arthritis. Some come with a smartphone app that allows you to track usage and sleep patterns.

* Ab toner — Instead of spending hours in the gym doing crunches, you can enhance your workout by wearing a piece of technology that works to strengthen, firm and tone your abs. The Slendertone Connect Abs wearable belt uses electrical muscle stimulation (EMS) to stimulate the major abdominal muscles, and can be worn and used at any time — even under your clothes. Users report visible results in six to eight weeks when used at least five days per week for 30 minutes. You can control this FDA-cleared device through an app on Android or Apple smartphones, and choose one of five goal-driven programs, from essential toning to post-natal and even advanced toning. The app also tracks and shares data on your progress. Visit www.slendertone.com.

* Sleep trackers — Getting the right amount of sleep is critical for overall health, so sleep trackers have gained popularity as aids to help people get better rest. Many types are available and some are wearable. Sleep trackers monitor such sleep metrics as REM phases, how long per night you spend in light sleep versus deep sleep, wake times, how quickly you fall asleep, what time you sleep each night and more.

* UV detector — An emerging form of wearable technology, UV detectors monitor skin exposure to harmful ultra-violet radiation — the portion of sunlight that causes sunburn, tanning and skin cancer. Multiple versions are under development, and one commercially available detector is a small patch that you wear on your skin and then scan using your smartphone that’s been equipped with a special app. The app allows you to read the information recorded in the patch so you know your UV exposure, and offers tips for sun safety, including what level SPF sunscreen you should wear.

“Many health care and tech industry watchers say the wearable health care device trend is really just getting started,” Nohilly says. “Technology has great potential to help make it easier than ever to achieve our health and fitness goals, whether we want to get a better night’s rest, improving cardio-vascular health or get toned abs.”

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Gig Economy News: Get Paid More (and Better) This Holiday Season!

At Fiverr, we’re in the business of helping entrepreneurs turn ideas into reality and dreams into income. This means we get to enjoy a lot of inspiring stories of overcoming obstacles and finding success, but it also means that we … Read More

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Tech tools that can help you find a mortgage and home faster

(BPT) – Whether you’re a first-time or experienced homebuyer, chances are a good portion of your real estate journey will take place online. In fact, four in 10 homebuyers start their house-hunting with an online search, according to the National Association of REALTORS. It’s easy to understand why: Online tools and apps can make the homebuying experience — including finding a mortgage — easier and more enjoyable.

If you’ll be shopping for a home this fall and winter, use the tools homebuyers find most useful, according to the Bank of America Homebuyer Insights Report:

* Mortgage calculators — It’s important you’re as comfortable with your mortgage terms and lender as you are with the home you’re paying for. An affordable mortgage helps homebuyers reap the full benefits of home ownership, including building equity and long-term financial security, and a mortgage calculator can help you understand what you would pay each month, as well as estimate monthly mortgage payments and rate options. As the Homebuyer Insights Report revealed, more than half of Generation X homebuyers and 46 percent of millennials and baby boomers use mortgage calculators during the home shopping process.

* Finance websites — Home shoppers can learn a lot about mortgage options and a bank’s customer service through websites that feature reviews of mortgage loan officers and lending institutions. More than a third (36 percent) of first-time homebuyers and over a quarter (28 percent) of experienced homebuyers use bank apps or websites to research reviews of lenders and loan officers.

* Loan status portals — Applying for a mortgage can sometimes be overwhelming, but real-time loan status information is transforming the process. For example, Bank of America’s Home Loan Navigator allows mortgage applicants to securely upload, submit and sign documents, get real-time status updates on their application and loan, receive important documents and disclosures and even communicate with experts via secure messaging.

* Mobile real estate listings — With many home listing websites available, it can be difficult to narrow down online searches to homes that meet all your criteria in your location of choice. Using a bank’s online real estate center can help you refine your home search or, if you’re selling, it can help you determine your home’s estimated value. And some even provide the ancillary information you’re looking for – like school data and walkability scores — to make a home purchase decision.

* Down payment sources — Saving for a down payment can be one of the most challenging tasks of buying a house. It’s sometimes difficult to know how much you’ll need for your down payment, or to figure out how to fit the extra savings category into your monthly budget. You can find numerous down payment calculators online, but Bank of America’s Down Payment Resource Center goes a big step further than most by offering a searchable database of more than 1,000 local and national assistance programs that may be able to save you money on your down payment.

* Social media — Decorating your home is one of the most enjoyable aspects of home ownership. Many buyers turn to social media resources like Pinterest for home decor inspiration. In fact, 49 percent of millennials use Pinterest, 37 percent Facebook and 33 percent Instagram for home decorating ideas, while 32 percent of Gen Xers use Pinterest, 37 percent like Facebook and 11 percent favor Instagram, according to the Homebuyer Insights Report.

* Home design apps — With inspiration in hand, homebuyers can use home design apps to put their ideas into virtual reality. These apps allow you to take and store room measurements, make notes on design ideas and see virtual representations of what your decor plans will look like in your home. From white walls to fully-furnished, many design apps can help you visualize your dream interior for free, and more robust versions are available for purchase.

To learn more about home buying and mortgages, visit Bank of America — Home Loans.

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