RealAge

Description:

RealAge is a health-promotion program targeted at older adults, including assessments, information and advice relating to a range of physical health conditions. It is designed for use in the workplace, but is freely accessible to everyone. The site includes a ‘RealAge test' which based on your responses estimates how old your body thinks you are - and generates an individual risk profile and suggests areas needing improvement. A range of other disorder-specific assessments are also available. Using the ‘health action plan' section of the site you can create plans, and keep a health journal to monitor your progress. Information pages relating to a range of conditions and advice about healthy living are available on the site - and you can also participate in an online forum.

Service URL:

http://www.realage.com/

Agency Responsible:

RealAge (material written by medical experts including Dr Mike Roizen and Dr Mehmet Oz) .

Details

Format:

Website.

Intervention Type:

Educational (primarily educational material or psychoeducation).

Course Length:

Long (more than 5 modules).

Support Option:

Automated only.

Target Audience

Primary Category:

Physical Health.

Target Audience:

Older Adult. And adults in the workplace

Language:

English.

Access

Fee:

Free.

Access:

Open: With registration.

Contact Details:

support@realage.com

Research evidence

Research Trials:

1

Research RCTs:

0

Outcome Summary:

There has been one evaluation study of the RealAge program. In a randomised controlled study older support and academic staff at a university in the USA were assigned to one of three groups: the RealAge intervention group, a second web/coach supported intervention and a control group who received printed health promotion material. Overall, participants in the second web/coach supported intervention group performed better than participants in the other two groups in relation to diet and physical activity measures. Indeed, no significant differences were seen between the RealAge group and the control group in relation to percentage of energy from fat, consumption of fruit and vegetables, number of minutes of moderate exercise, stress, smoking, BMI or weight. However, participants in the RealAge group did experience a significant decline in waist measurement at 6 months, and this was maintained at 12 months. Thus, there is some evidence, all be it weak evidence, in support of the effectiveness of the RealAge site.

Recommended rating, reviewer 1:

Recommended rating, reviewer 2:

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Research paper citations

Hughes, S.L., Seymour, R.B., Campbell, R.T., Shaw, J.W., Fabiyi, C., Sokas, R. (2011) Comparison of two health-promotion programs for older workers. American Journal of Public Health, 101(5): 883-891