Technology, as we all know, can be a blessing or a curse. On this site I am going to focus on the technologies that can really bless lives and I will place a particular focus on health monitoring devices.
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| Photo by National Cancer Institute on Unsplash |
We are all familiar with the wonderful breakthroughs in real time monitoring of blood sugar levels for diabetics. I have a friend who has a 10 year old son who was just diagnosed with Type 1 diabetes. I witnessed first hand his struggles to monitor his blood sugar levels the old fashioned way with finger pricks and test strips. It's tough enough for adults to manage their sugar levels and insulin doses and it's really tough for children. The continuous glucose monitoring devices have been a game changer and the difference it has made in my friend's son's health has been amazing.
Another true technology health blessing has come in the way of devices to help recovering stroke victims do their rehab much more effectively. IMU sensors can be worn on the backs of hands to track arm movements. EMG sensors can continuously track muscle contractions and the sensors can be worn on the forearm and around the biceps. These measurements are extremely helpful to folks who are trying to regain their performance levels prior to stroke.
We are all aware of the advances of the Fitbit and the Apple Smart Watches that can monitor several key health metrics. So I won't tire you with rehashed information concerning these devices.
However, technology continues it's relentless advance into the future and this is even more true when it comes to medical monitoring devices. There are two new innovations that I believe will be real breakthrough products for those who pursue health, fitness and healing.
The first product is manufactured by Withing and it is a "smart scale". Just how smart is the Withing Body Cardio? Well this product will do a lot more than flash your weight total. Miraculously, it can reveal your heart rate and your PWV (pulse wave velocity). PWV is a metric that reveals your level of "arterial stiffness". This becomes more and more important as you get older.
The Body Cardio can also reveal your weight trends and your body fat composition. Let's face it, your total body weight doesn't tell you all that much. We need to know how much of our weight total is actually fat, water or muscle and those numbers have everything to do with fitness and health.
The smart scale can be connected to your wifi and the data can be sent to your health care professional. The Body Cardio is reasonably priced around $150. If you are interested in more than a single weight read out then this device is something you should check out.
The second product I want to make you aware of is the Movano Ring for women. These lovely rings come in several colors and really don't look like a medical monitor at all! The ring can be synced with your smart phone and can reveal in real time your heart rate, heart rate variability, sleep, respiration, blood oxygen, temperature. steps and calories burned. Imagine how beneficial this ring could have been during the recent Covid pandemic. The blood oxygen and temperature features could have been extremely useful in fighting this virus.
Movano also touts the benefit this ring can have at your next doctor's appointment as try to explain to your physician why you have been feeling the way you do!
The Movano Ring will be released in the last half of 2022. If you contact the company you can participate in a Beta test of this product.
I hope you found this article helpful. I will be presenting more articles on health technologies as they become available. Leave a comment and let me know what you think!
