Not for Profit App Hits Number One
16 November 2011 at 10:57 am
A brain health app designed by an Australian Not for Profit organisation became the number one app in the nation this week, racking up 41,000 downloads in just 48 hours.
BrainyApp is the world’s first dementia risk reduction app designed to help people monitor and improve their Brain-Heart health, and is available as a free download for users of iPhone, iPod and iPad devices from the App Store.
BrainyApp was designed by dementia support charity Alzheimer’s Australia and the Bupa Health Foundation, which supports health research and education.
Alzheimer’s Australia CEO Glenn Rees said, “the rapid success of BrainyApp demonstrates that Australians are eager for information and strategies to help them improve their brain health.”
Rees said there are 267,000 Australians living with dementia, and this number is increasing.
With no cure available for dementia, Rees said “we need to give priority to initiatives such as BrainyApp that raise awareness of dementia, and help people to understand and reduce their risk of developing the condition.”
The BrainyApp survey let users know about their brain health, and provides activities for users to complete to raise their brain health score.
Certain lifestyle and health behaviours, particularly around midlife, are associated with reduced risk of developing dementia in late life, according to BrainyApp Ambassador, Lily Serna of SBS’Letters and Numbers.
“It is remarkable to think that the lifestyle choices we make now, in our 20s, 30s and 40s, may help reduce the risk of developing dementia later in life”, said Serna.
Josh Guest, Managing Director of software company b2cloud – the developers of the BrainyApp – said the popularity of the app shows that people have a real interest in this area.
More information about BrainyApp is available at www.brainyapp.com.au
