SHAPE Magazine 1 / 2013 - SCA

88
YEARS
OLD
for a day
“Instantly I’m almost blind and deaf,
and the pain in my back makes my
eyes water. For a few hours I get to
experience double my 44 years.”
Shape journalist Sara Bergqvist gets a
day’s foretaste of what it’s like to be old.
text SARA BERGQVIST photo PONTUS JOHANSSON
THE GLOBAL POPULATION is aging
rapidly. To increase understanding
of elderly consumers’ needs,
several SCA employees and customers
have tried out an age suit,
which quickly makes the wearer feel 30 to
40 years older. Now it’s my turn. Suddenly
I’m 20 kilograms heavier, burdened by
weights and pads that restrict my movements
and make me unsteady on my feet.
Add a pair of glasses that simulate cataracts
and some earplugs and earmuff s
that make me nearly deaf, and I’m ready
to go out food shopping.
I’ll admit I’m a bit nervous. Will I fall
and break something? Or be run over by
a car, as I can neither see nor hear and
26 SCA SHAPE 1 2013
BACK SPLINT WITH
CONICAL SPIKES
UNDER THE VEST
Causes constant pain
that is exacerbated by
bending down
SHOES WITH A
ROUNDED SOLE
Impair balance
EARPLUGS AND
EARMUFFS
Substantially
impaired hearing
DOUBLE
ELBOW PADS
Restrict mobility
DOUBLE GLOVES
Restrict mobility
and make it diffi cult
to grip things