CNN featured Leslie Saxon of the Keck School of USC and her work using technology to improve health. As executive director of the USC Center for Body Computing, Saxon researches digital tools that allow doctors and patients to monitor health data together. “After 20 years, I finally understand that just telling the patient what to do in a paternalistic way doesn’t result in good outcomes. Patients have to partner with you,” Saxon said. The story highlighted several devices Saxon has worked on, including smart phone applications and wireless sensors that provide real-time health data. “The essence of digital health is interdisciplinary connectivity, and Leslie has been a true pioneer at that,” said Keck School of USC Dean Carmen Puliafito.

Leslie Saxon, M.D., is a Professor of clinical medicine at the USC Keck School of Medicine, specializing in the diagnosis and treatment of arrhythmias in patients with congestive heart failure. After serving as the director of the electrophysiology laboratory and implantable device services at UC San Francisco, Dr. Saxon was recruited to serve as the Chief of Cardiovascular Medicine at USC.

In addition to using state-of-the-art resynchronization devices in patients with arrhythmias, such as modified pacemakers and implantable defribrillators, Dr. Saxon also collaborates with medical device companies to evaluate the latest, most innovative interventional gadgets for patients with difficult-to-treat heart failure.

Dr. Saxon has completed over 75 publications in various medical journals and is an active member of a multitude of organizations, including the American College of Cardiology, the Heart Rhythm Society, The American Heart Association, and the Heart Failure Society of America.

In 2002, Dr. Saxon co-chaired the first Heart Rhythm Society Conference in Cardiac Resynchronization. On October 26, 2007, Dr. Saxon was proud to host the First Annual USC Body Computing Conference, which brought together leading authors and futurists as well as leaders from the fields of medicine, design, entertainment, the FDA, investment banking, and pharmaceuticals for a day of intense discussions about the nascent but exciting field of wireless physiologic monitoring.

Another great post from Greatist.

Maintaining good health means asking a lot of questions. How far did I run this morning? Why am I tossing and turning for hours every night? How many calories were in that Chipotle burrito? But when counting every refried bean just won’t work, it can be hard to find answers. Luckily, there are at least 50 simple solutions to our health- and wellness-related quandaries.

Read full article here.

The Alpha Heart Rate Monitor watch from MIO Global is the world’s first performance level, strapless, continuous heart rate monitor you can wear on your wrist. Alpha uses ANT+ or Bluetooth Smart technology to transmit your heart rate data to smartphones and other compatible devices. It has been tested EKG-accurate even while you are running at performance speeds of up to 20km/h (12mph)!

Before Alpha (and others like Basis), the most common way to get an accurate heart rate continuously while exercising was to wear a strap around your chest. With Alpha’s innovative technology, the world of heart rate monitoring will be changed forever!

Read about how the Alpha heart rate watch works here

Read the extensive wear-tested review of the Alpha HRM watch here

Google is looking for Explorers for Google Glass!

We’re looking for bold, creative individuals who want to join us and be a part of shaping the future of Glass. We’d love to make everyone an Explorer, but we’re starting off a bit smaller. We’re still in the early stages, and while we can’t promise everything will be perfect, we can promise it will be exciting.

Watch the video to see how Google Glass feel…

You can get a sneak peek of what Google Glass does from some of the images below.

Google has the brains and money to jump into fitness devices by marrying Google Glass, Google Now, Motorola Mobility (they already have MOTO ACTV), and a few sensors… Stay tuned.

The Greatist Team recently published the ’100 Most Influential People in Health and Fitness 2012′.

This year in the world of fitness, health, and happiness, healthy food became a central focus, one man taught people to become chefs in four hours flat, and the Governator became even more famous (is that possible?). There are thousands of people working every day to revolutionize the way people think about health and wellness. When trying to determine the most powerful innovators in this space, we looked at a few factors: social reach, the trends they’ve set, the products they’ve created, research they’ve contributed to, media coverage, and professional certifications and degrees they’ve attained (among a few other things). After many discussions (and way too much math), here are the 100 people we determined to be the most influential figures in fitness, health, and happiness this year.

See the full article and list here.

According to Misfit Wearables, Misfit Shine is an elegant, all-metal activity tracker that you can sync with your smartphone just by placing it on your phone screen. Find out how active you are every day, and set goals to become more active. Wear it how you want, wherever you want.

Misfit Shine’s proprietary sensor algorithms can track cycling and swimming in addition to just steps so you’ll get more credit where credit is due. To see how active you’ve been throughout the day, simply tap Shine and a halo of lights shines through invisible micro-holes, laser drilled into the metal casing.

It’s tiny, and at just several millimeters thick, is one of the world’s thinnest wireless activity trackers so it can be worn just about anywhere, even when wearing next to nothing. Clip it on your pants, bra, shirt, or shoes. Or use the wristband and wear it on your wrist where it can function as a watch too.

Misfit Shine was made to last a lifetime and designed to complement any fashion statement. Carved out of a solid block of aircraft-grade aluminum, it is super strong and waterproof.

The Misfit Shine, an elegant personal activity tracker that you can wear anywhere. Pre-order now at Misfit Wearables. MSRP $99.

Adoption of health devices are still low and will grow astronomically in 2013. We had a glimpse on some of these fitness devices at the recent Consumer Electronics Show (CES 2013) in Las Vegas. Prices are in the affordable range – they vary with features based on what is tracked or analyzed and whether mobile apps (iPhone or Android) are available.

The Basis watch is a wrist-based health tracker and online personal dashboard designed to help you easily adopt healthy habits into your daily routine.

• Get Active, Boost Energy
• Sleep Better, Feel Better
• Burn Calories, Get Fit

Basis tracks heart rate and more to provide the most comprehensive picture of your health.

Basis multi-sensor device continuously measures motion, perspiration, and skin temperature as well as captures heart rate patterns throughout the day and night. It also find opportunities in your daily routine to insert take-charge-of-your health actions, like getting more activity and regular sleep. Simply choose the area you want to focus on and Basis does the rest.

For each habit you adopt, Basis first suggest daily targets and manageable weekly goals. When you reach your goals, you get credit for your accomplishments and can further unlock the potential of the system.

basis also does quick metric checks, like heart rate, steps and calories burned, right at your wrist. Use your online dashboard for personalized insights into your habits. Mobile apps will extend the experience to your phone.

Dive deeper into your data: your activity levels (duration, steps taken, calories burned), sleep stats (duration, times awoken and sleep quality) and heart rate patterns—even get your resting heart rate.

You can order your Basis watch here (currently back ordered). MSRP $199.

Make Fitbit Flex part of your everyday lifestyle - Flex is your perfect companion. Wear it on your wrist day and night and it will track all of your activity. Just check out the lights to see how you stack up against your personal goals. It’s the motivation you need to get out and be more active.

Set a personal goal – Flex uses LED lights to show you how your day is stacking up against your goal. Sync your stats real-time directly on select iPhone and Android devices and computers. See your stats anytime. Also with some Android devices, you can tap your device to launch your Fitbit stats.

You can set goals, track your activity, sleep trends, log food, workouts, and more. And like with all Fitbit trackers, you can earn badges, connect with friends to share and compete for extra encouragement.

You can pre-order the Fitbit Flex here. MSRP $100.