Will a massage chair help combat high blood pressure, stress and depression? Bodyfriend Company has developed the Elizabeth Medical Massage Chair, an industry first, to address the skyrocketing stresses around the globe.
It may be hard to believe that a massage chair can be a medical solution to many of the ailments faced during the pandemic. However, the company’s newest massage chair was added to its lineup to address the compounding stress, anxiety and depression faced by so many through pairing a blood pressure and lifestyle-management app with tailored massage programs.
For those interested in exploring the benefits of massage chairs, especially ones designed to address medical concerns like high blood pressure, stress, and depression, researching the best Osaki massage chairs can be a great starting point to find the right solution for your needs.
According to the CDC, nearly half of adults in the United States (45 percent) have hypertension, with 30 million adults recommended to take medication as a result.1 The American Psychological Association also reflects this sentiment in its “Stress in America 2020” study, which states, “nearly 8 in 10 adults (78 percent) say the coronavirus pandemic is a significant source of stress in their life.”2
“We developed the Elizabeth Medical Massage Chair to be an industry first and to address the skyrocketing stresses around the globe,” said Changjoo Kim, CEO of Bodyfriend North America. “Relying on critical data on the effects of stress, anxiety and depression, we combined creative massage design engineering with a hardware/software platform that can accurately measure and manage a person’s blood pressure—ultimately optimizing the blood pressure of the person over time.”
Elizabeth Medical is a product that systematically links with the healthcare application and various physical therapy methods to manage a user’s blood pressure. The chair relies on data pulled from the app to create a programmatic massage that acts as a therapeutic tool. It activates the parasympathetic nerve and blood vessel dilation through thermal massage and respiratory rate management through its integrated speakers.
The chair and related lifestyle-management app also leverage cognitive behavioral therapy programs designed by psychiatrists at the Bodyfriend Medical R&D Center. These programs are meant to positively engage and encourage users to continue their health transformation journey through behavior improvement, customized diet and exercise recommendations and access to health-oriented content, such as articles and tips.
The Elizabeth Medical Massage Chair compliments other advances within Bodyfriend’s Medical R&D Center with its Mental Massage and Brain Massage—launched in 2018. Kim also mentioned that these advances by Bodyfriend in the massage-chair industry “not only take care of the body, but they take care of the mind … this is critical in fulfilling our vision of ultimately extending our customer’s healthy lifespan by 10 years with the most limited need for medical or medicinal treatments.”
Bodyfriend is currently working on building out its software and hardware capabilities by integrating what they call a Healthcare Robot, which will be designed around artificial intelligence and IoT (internet of things). This integration of machine learning and other technologies will be able to send messages to the doctor’s office when abnormal vital signs are detected. It will also build on algorithms for connecting the customer’s healthcare and psychological data to connected apps, medical specialists and more.