Clevermind Wants To Help People With Alzheimer’s Via An iPad App [Kickstarter]

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Clevermind

Alzheimer’s disease affects over five million people in the US, making it the sixth leading cause of death in the country. One in three seniors die with Alzheimer’s or another dementia, and almost 15 percent of the folks caring for these seniors are long-distance caregivers, according to the Alzheimer’s Association.

Clevermind, LLC, led by the son of an elderly father who experiences Alzheimer’s, CEO Glenn Palumbo, has created an iPad app to help people with varying cognitive abilities maintain or improve their neurological function. He hopes to help many people who may not yet see symptoms of Alzeheimer’s or other dementia maintain their own social awareness as well as aid their independence over time.

“While there is no cure for Alzheimer’s,” said Palumbo in a statement, “accumulating evidence shows that it is possible to ward off age related decline in cognitive function by means of regular mental exercise and physical activity.” The idea here is to enhance neuroplasticity, a measure of the flexibility of the brain’s neurons.

The app itself, due out in June of this year, has an easy to use interface to help people create and maintain a schedule, connect with loved ones, and keeping themselves entertained on their own, while reinforcing mental proficiency with games and other activities. The app includes speech recognition, brain training and assessment, tracking, and reporting, as well as the ability to work on the big screen, via AirPlay and an Apple TV.

The Clevermind team hopes that this app will become the cornerstone of a multi-disciplinary team approach to helping elderly individuals maintain a better life and impact the devastating progress of Alzheimer’s and other dementia.

There are two weeks left to back this project and help it fund itself at the $10,000 level. So far, it’s raised a bit over $3,000–if it works, imagine the impact it could have on your own loved ones.

If you want to support the project, head over to the Clevermind Kickstarter page and pledge your support, and be sure to watch the main Kickstarter video at the top of the page.

Source: Kickstarter

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