After watching me stand on the Withings Body Scan scales for a few mornings, my wife said, “I’m not getting on that.” The next day, she weighed herself, and the day after that, she did a full body scan. Next, she explained that her vascular age is below her actual age, whilst mine is six years older.
Yes, this device does tell you how much you weigh, but so much more. Health products are hot sellers in retailers today, and Australians are becoming more health-conscious, seeking to understand what they might need to improve their health.
With that in mind, the Withings Body Scan ($799 in Australia) can weigh you to two decimal places (within 50g), and provide your segmental body composition, which measures fat percentage, muscle weight, and water percentage. An ECG will be taken to detect whether your heart has atrial fibrillation. The apparent age of your arteries is measured to determine vascular age.
How does the Body Scan differ from regular scales?
Now I must admit that a few times a year, I would jump on the old dumb scales, then take my weight and enter it into Google Fit. With the Withings, all your stats are automatically transferred to the cloud. From here, you can sync the data with both the Google and Apple Health apps. You can even send your stats to a medical practitioner or perhaps a fitness trainer. Your standing heart rate is also measured to round out your heart functions
Through the sweat glands in your bare feet, the Body Scan will measure your nerve health before wrapping up testing with the ‘Visceral Fat Index’, which measures fat around organs, BMR, which is a measure of how many calories you burn at rest and BMI, which compares your height, which you enter separately, with your weight.
To get you ready for your day, and because the unit is connected to the internet, you will receive the day’s weather report and a pollution index.
The testing requires you to stand on the scales whilst holding an attached handle. A series of tests is then completed over 90 seconds. A reasonably large screen displays your results as you go, or you can choose to see motivational messages instead. I would have liked to have seen an even larger screen, as those with deteriorating eyesight may have trouble reading it.
Information is power
The real magic, however, is the data analysis via the Withings app. Here, your data is recorded with trends shown. In my case, I know I need to lose some weight, and so far, so good. However, according to my BMI, I have a ways to go, and hopefully I can also lower my vascular age. The Body Scan can support up to eight different users, and each morning as I weigh myself, it greets me by name, I assume based on my weight.
A neat feature is that it can differentiate fat in your arms, torso, and legs and compare your figures with the average population, so you really know where you need to do some work.
To gain additional insights, you can add other Withings products that track sleep, exercise, and other metrics to deepen the analysis. A Withings+ subscription at $180 a year will add more advanced interpretation of your results and advice based on your health objectives. The subscription also allows you to print a detailed report that you can share with your GP, providing access to action plans and coaching on specific habits, such as sleeping better.
This subscription price, plus the purchase price, puts you at $1,000, which is a lot from one perspective. But can you put a price on your health?
For those looking for rewards, you get virtual badges for completing milestones, such as weighing yourself a specific number of times. I also like that there are special modes for pregnancy, baby weights (by holding the baby) and athletes.
The post Withings Body Scan scales weigh up your health: Helpful or fad? appeared first on GadgetGuy.
0 (mga) komento:
Mag-post ng isang Komento