A lot of apps out there do little more than give drivers access to their owner's manual. Yes, there are some that offer more value via features such as remote start, climate control and headlight flash. It's not that Ford is knocking any of these capabilities. After all, referencing the owner's manual can sometimes be necessary. And, nobody's going to argue against the added comfort and convenience remote access brings.

Ford, however, wanted to use the increasingly-popular app interface to create something a little more meaningful...something with the capacity to quite literally change - and maybe even save - people's lives. And, working together with Well.doc - a key player in the emerging field of mHealth integrated services - they have. In fact, they presented their late-breakin, in-car health and wellness systems at the Wireless Health 2011 Conference, just last week.

The pillar of the new in-car apps and services?  Ford's very own, exclusive SYNC technology. "Ford SYNC is well known in the industry and with consumers as a successful in-car infotainment system," explains Paul Mascarenas Chief Technology Officer and Vice President, Ford Research and Innovation. "But we want to broaden the paradigm, transforming SYNC into a tool that can help improve people's lives as well as the driving experience."¹

The first two populations Ford is planning to cater to with their in-car health and wellness apps are drivers looking for help managing diabetes and asthma and/or allergies. In fact, Ford has already developed a prototype that allows Ford SYNC to connect to a Medtronic continuous glucose monitoring device, and monitor and share glucose levels, as well as provide secondary alerts if levels drop too low.

The impact this could have on people's lives is profound! According to the American Diabetes Association, nearly 26-million people are now living with diabetes in the U.S. A recent survey conducted by the CTIA, also reports roughly 78-percent of U.S. consumers are interested in mobile health solutions.

Interested in learning more? Be sure to stay tuned.  Bayer Ford, located at 200 E Central Ave, Comanche, TX, promises to help you keep your finger on the pulse of this and other ground-breaking Ford news.

Source: ¹http://headsets.tmcnet.com/news/2011/10/13/5850522.htm