Berlin - Creaking limbs, blurred vision and hearing problems - getting older often isn't a lot of fun. Now the young and fit can grab a foretaste of life ahead with what its makers claim is the world's first age simulator.
It's an all-enveloping suit akin to a well-protected motorcyclist's outfit but with a few add-ons to help the wearer experience the feeling of being old.
The suit has six kilograms of weights sewn in at various points to simulate a sense of heaviness. In-built ear muffs block out most noise.
The helmet has a visor which both restricts the line of vision and wraps it in a dull yellowish tinge. Arm and knee-joints are stiffened, making it hard to sit down or find a comfortable position.
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| 'To make younger people aware of the specific difficulties that older people have' |
Even the gloves have a little device inside which acts like a tiny needle, simulating arthritis.
Dubbed the "age explorer" by its German creators Meyer-Hentschel, it is designed to help improve the lives of those entering their autumn years.
"Its goal is to make younger people aware of the specific difficulties that older people have," explained Hanne Meyer-Hentschel, who runs the consultancy in the western city of Saarbruecken.
For instance, it helps designers of electrical appliances, cars and medical equipment, as well as hospital and home-care staff, to imagine what it can be like to be 70, and respond better to the needs of the elderly.
So far, 4 500 people have tried out the simulator, two thirds of them from the business world and the others from the care sector.
| One pensioner for every two working members of the population by 2040 |
"Cycling at 70? Impossible," concluded 23-year-old Julia, testing the suit for the benefit of the readers of the mass-selling Bild newspaper. The joints, deliberately stiffened, prevented her getting even one leg over the bike.
Crossing the street is an "adventure," sitting down on a bench literally a pain, and getting up again even more exhausting.
Another guinea pig, Ranga Yogeshwar, explains how he fumbled around in pain for his wallet to buy a rail ticket, with the gloves pricking his hands at every moment.
The idea of the "age explorer" goes back to 1994, when a Swiss company asked Meyer-Hentschel to advise it on making its chain of shops more accessible for the elderly.
"The managers and assistants, all dressed in special units, were each given a shopping list and had huge difficulties in carrying out their tasks," Hanne Meyer-Hentschel said.
Her company has now developed a third generation of the simulator suit.
Although reticent to disclose her turnover, she claims that her company is having to expand to meet demand.
And she claims she has a ready market in Germany - with an average of one child per family, it has one of the fastest-greying populations in Europe.
According to demographic estimates, there will be one pensioner for every two working members of the population by 2040, compared with one in four in 1995. - Sapa-AFP
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