Mindfulness, meditation and mud masks are great tools, but they’re old solutions, and we’ve got some uber-modern problems to solve. Instead, forward-thinking tech-can-cure-everything companies are creating out-of-the-box solutions to our modern health and wellness problems. Here’s what we might be plugging into in 2021.
Custom wellness soundscapes
Music as therapy is being radically reinvented. It’s no longer about tunes that inexplicably make us feel good – it’s about precision tracks engineered with wellness in mind. Endel, a Berlin-based startup, famously signed the first non-human record deal with Warner Music in 2019. It’s creating ‘generative’ AI-powered soundscapes that pull your biological data to create custom, always-changing audio. MIT-affiliated Sync Project has worked with neuroscientists to develop personalised music therapeutics for pain management (and it’s been bought by Bose, no big deal).
All-day, all-night circadian wellness
Tech companies are realising that good sleep isn’t just about the night hours. We’re developed to be super sensitive to light, and we’ve got to control our daytime light exposure to sleep well at night. Hotels like New York City’s Equinox and Germany’s Lanserhof Tegernsee have launched new sleep programmes using sleep coaches and light colours specifically designed for the time of day, and soon we’ll see ‘biodynamic’ lighting options filter into our homes.
Virtual reality meditation
VR meditation is totally redefining the phrase ‘go to your happy place’. In many of the new guided meditation VR programs, you can actually see your happy place, whether it’s on a beach on the Costa del Sol, an ice plateau sitting high above the clouds (put on a jumper for that one) or a crunchy autumn forest. We’re partial to a bit of relaxing in a blossoming Japanese garden.
An everything tracker
Our health vocab is rapidly expanding – we now know all about blood oxygen levels and heart rates, so it was only a matter of time before Apple gave us the ability to track them. Apple’s newest smartwatches even come with cellular data (if you’re on Spark) so you can leave your phone at home and call and text straight from your wrist.
The Treatment:
LED light therapy
First, NASA used LEDs to grow plants in space, then to boost the ability of astronauts’ bodies to heal wounds, and then the beauty industry got hold of it. And if it’s good enough for NASA, it’s good enough for us. Red LED light stimulates the fibroblasts that produce collagen, which heals your skin and reduces signs of ageing, and it calms inflammation. Be warned: you’ll look like a Bond villain in the Dream Machine while you’re at it, but this is about the gains.
At Home:
DP Dermaceuticals LED Face Mask: This at-home LED face mask uses light to stimulate collagen- and elastin-producing cells. (RRP $1499 from Probeauty)
In the salon:
Nirvana Beauty Lounge: Try a one-off 40-minute LED light therapy facial or pick one of the Kick Start (three treatments) or New Me (six treatments) packages. $90/$240/$420
Nicola Quinn Beauty & Day Spa: Book in for either a one-off treatment or sign up for two months of unlimited visits to the contactless LED light lounge. $99/$399
Shop wellbeing tech
La Roche-Posay My Skin Track UV Sensor
This tiny sensor clips onto your clothes and measures your daily UV exposure so you know when to head indoors.
It also tracks pollution, pollen and humidity. (RRP $99.95 from Apple)
Audio Technica Noise Cancelling Bluetooth Headphones
Block out everything around you and concentrate on something soothing, like Endel’s biorhythm-generated wellness soundscapes. (RRP $399 from Smiths City)
Karlsson Mr Alarm
While we wait for precision biodynamic lighting, embrace classic with this super cool Karlsson alarm clock and leave your phone outside the bedroom, where it belongs. (RRP $59 from Ballantynes)
Fitbit Sense
Fitbit’s kicking butt in the health tracking game, with stress management, heart rate tracking and skin temperature measurement in the stylish new Fitbit Sense. (RRP $579 Smiths City)
Oura Ring
Not a watch person? Get in on the sleep tracking game with this sleek ring that measures body temperature, heart rate variability and breathing rate, among other things. (RRP $560 from Sleep Well Clinic)