Virtual reality (VR) is giving some senior citizens a new lease on life. According to The Associated Press, Stanford University studied the use of VR at 17 senior living communities. Researchers found that out of 245 participants between the ages of 65 and 103 years old, most saw improvement in their reported emotional well-being and interactions with staff.
The study is now being used to adapt VR technology to patients with Alzheimer’s and dementia in an effort to improve their emotional well-being.
According to the study, around 80% of seniors involved in the testing reported having a more positive attitude after using VR, and 60% said they fell less socially isolated.
“Part of what triggers the memory with virtual reality is the idea of immersion,” Mynd Immersive CEO Chris Brickler said. “Right, so, when we take somebody out of the four walls of their current environment and place them into a different place, the mind treats that experience differently. The mind thinks that we’re actually close to being that reality. So, that can bring back a tremendous amount of joy, a tremendous amount of memories.”
The findings by Stanford University researchers come as America braces for a “silver tsunami,” with a record 4.1 million people set to turn 65 this year, according to Axios.
With a potentially large pool of customers, companies who manufacture VR headsets will need to be ready to address issues of price and comfort.
Many Vision Pro owners returned the $3,500 headsets to Apple, as a flurry of posts on social media showed users boxing up their headsets right when the 14-day window for a full refund was closing, according to The Verge.
The reasons customers cited for returning their Vision Pro headsets ranged from complaints of motion sickness to the weight of the device being too heavy. One customer told The Verge that he burst a blood vessel in his eye using the Apple headset.
Mynd Immersive, which creates virtual reality headsets for seniors, said comfort is something the company is working on. Mynd Immersive said that common complaints relate to weight, heat and nausea. So, the company introduced new headsets.
Mynd Immersive’s new headsets reportedly weigh 6 ounces, which is down from a pound on previous headsets, and they have a built-in fan for cooling.
