A healthy lifestyle begins at your fingertips

There is no reason for you not to care for and maintain your health. Here’s how to take care of yourself from head to toe with the help of technology.

A study from the AIA Group in 2018 showed that Indonesia ranked the lowest in the Asia Pacific regarding the application of a healthy lifestyle. Despite being satisfied with their health condition, the research also revealed that Indonesians’ healthy living activities decreased from 4.0 in 2016 to 3.6 in 2018.

Several contributing factors include the wrong assumption that exercising takes a lot of effort, a lack of concern for nutrition due to the perception that healthy food is more expensive, and others. This also triggers the potential for diseases that are often ignored by society, one of which is obesity. The obesity rate among Indonesians over 18 years old spiked from 14.8% in 2014 to 21.8% in 2018.

Obesity causes not only a decrease in productivity but also a decrease in the quality of life and premature death. Meanwhile, research from the Bogor Agricultural Institute (IPB) shows that the total economic loss due to obesity in Indonesia is IDR 78.5 trillion annually, equivalent to 0.9 percent of Indonesia’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP).

Increasing health awareness is vital to reduce public health problems in the future. At East Ventures, we believe technology can act as a catalyst in the healthcare sector. Technology opens wider access to health services for the community and increases the effectiveness and efficiency of health services. Additionally, it accelerates achieving Sustainable Development Goals no. 3: Good health and well-being.

Below are the digital platforms within the East Ventures ecosystem providing opportunities for the wider community to form a healthy lifestyle and take care of their personal health, physically and mentally.

1. Planning a healthy lifestyle and diet through FitHappy

FitHappy can be a beginning for people to start shaping their healthy lifestyles. Through its app, FitHappy is creating a new methodology that focuses on forming healthy habits and lifestyles to manage food intake, exercise, and increase productivity. This is also in line with the Strategic Plan of the Indonesian Ministry of Health to promote a healthy lifestyle, prevent chronic diseases, and support GERMAS (Gerakan Masyarakat Hidup Sehat).

“We will continue to innovate in the healthcare sector to improve the overall efficacy and efficiency of our products for our users. FitHappy is very serious about simplifying wellness to make more people fit and happy,” said Imam Prabowo Karnohartomo, CEO & Co-Founder of FitHappy.

FitHappy believes that professional health services should be accessible to all levels of society.

2. Not only beautiful, but a healthy smile is also a long-term investment for everyone

Meanwhile, maintaining dental and oral health is equally important. However, most Indonesians need more time to pay attention to this part. The majority of Indonesians suffer from malocclusion – a medical condition where the position or arrangement of a person’s teeth is abnormal – but few seek treatment because the available solutions are still considered expensive and painful. Through KLAR Smile, Indonesians can access quality, yet affordable dental aligner products.

KLAR Smile, an oral and dental health startup founded in 2020, aims to reach remote areas to educate consumers about the importance of oral health, as well as launch other products to support dental health care.

“A beautiful and healthy smile is an investment in long-term health for everyone. We want to provide access for everyone to be able to maintain their oral health. KLAR Smile makes it more fun and accessible for all people, so they can have a higher awareness of maintaining oral and dental health,” said Ellen Pranata, Co-Founder & CEO of KLAR Smile.

3. Digital consultation from hair to intimate area concerns with experts

In many instances, we feel confused about where to consult regarding personal care, even though we have tried to treat it. For example, acne, thinning hair, or problems that arise in intimate areas. Meanwhile, beauty clinics and self-care solutions have always been considered expensive, impractical, and exclusive to big cities. In fact, taking care of the health of every part of the body can affect one’s quality of life and self-confidence.  

This is where Diri Care, a premier consumer healthtech company for people with skin, hair intimate health concerns, and beyond, plays a role. By harnessing the power of technology, Diri Care makes digital clinic services easily accessible anytime and anywhere, as well as enables virtual consultations with Diri Care’s clinical team to be run smoothly.

“Our self-care solutions are not only effective and medically proven, they are also personalized based on each consumer’s unique conditions. We want to help people in building their authentic self-confidence, as we believe the more confident and the less insecure people are with their skin, hair, body, and self-image, the healthier and happier they become,” said Armand Amadeus, COO & Co-Founder of Diri Care.

5. Confide with a psychologist to strengthen mental health

Maintaining mental health is as important as physical health. Unfortunately, some are still obtuse about mental health issues as they don’t know who to consult, as well as the negative stigma of mental problems. Mental health problems can arise anywhere and are experienced by both young and old.

For this reason, the emergence of a mental health startup becomes a beacon of light for the community to vent or consult with a professional psychologist without feeling somewhat ashamed or burdened by other people’s views. Several East Ventures portfolios can be a solution to overcome mental issues, such as Riliv, Bicarakan.id, and Mindtera.

Actively encouraging the development of Indonesian health technology

In addition to investing in startups that focus on health and body care, East Ventures has also invested in other healthtech startups, such as Nalagenetics and Nusantics, focusing on the biotechnology sector. Nalagenetics and Nusantics won Top Startup in the G20 Innovation League 2021 and G20 Digital Innovation Network 2022 respectively.

East Ventures also supports the launch of the Biomedical & Genome Science Initiative (BGSi), an initiative from the Indonesian Ministry of Health (Kemenkes) in an effort to provide precision medicine services to the public in August 2022. As a venture capital company that believes in the digital ecosystem in Indonesia, East Ventures will continue to fervently support the improvement of health for the people of Indonesia.

Happy 58th National Health Day!