How to use a smart speaker to build healthy habits
Your smart speaker helps you anticipate the weather every day, but could it help you live a healthier lifestyle?
With smart speakers becoming more common in U.S. households (estimates put the number of U.S. smart speaker owners at 66.4 million), the potential to apply them to our health may be promising.
“There are aspects of having a smart speaker in the home that could be beneficial to many groups of patients,” says Angela Sweeney, nurse practitioner at Aurora Health Care. “For example, individuals with conditions such as diabetes use smart speakers to set reminders for blood sugar checks and to take their insulin.”
Short of burning the calories or taking the medicine for us, your smart speaker (or the voice assistant in it) could be used for these healthy habits.
- Setting reminders to take prescribed medication
- Checking the calorie count on the food choices you’re considering
- Playing guided meditation for your mind/body wellbeing
- Fitting a quick workout into your busy schedule
- Helping you get a good night sleep with sounds, sleep reminders and guided relaxation
The application of smart speakers to health and wellness is a growing area of research, though it has limitations. A study published in the Journal of the American Medical Association on the efficacy of voice assistants to respond to some mental and physical health concerns found that the four mainstream voice assistants inconsistently connected users to appropriate resources. Smart speakers also do not comply with the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act, so they don’t protect your health information.
As with any smart device, users should secure their accounts and information by choosing strong passwords, changing passwords frequently and adjusting the privacy settings on the device.
“Whether you use a smart speaker for it or not, there is no question eating healthy and moving every day can help you live well,” Sweeney says.
Interested in building habits to improve your health? Start by taking an assessment of your healthy weight range by clicking here.
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About the Author
health enews staff is a group of experienced writers from our Advocate Health Care and Aurora Health Care sites, which also includes freelance or intern writers.
As a senior, I found the article to be helpful. If there were any “companion” sites that address senior solitude, it would be nice to know what / where they are.
Hi Steven. There are applications you can use if you have a smartphone that will allow you to connect with other people such as Instagram, Snapchat, or others to stay in contact.
This is a good idea.