Monitor your metabolism on the phone with a single breath

Identical twins Michal and Merav Mor have more than looks in common: both earned PhDs in physiology at Ben-Gurion University, both compete in triathlons, both are health researchers and mothers. Wanting to manage their nutrition scientifically, the Mor sisters came across a metric called respiratory quotient (RQ), the ratio of carbon dioxide (CO2) to oxygen (O2) in the breath. Measuring RQ after sleeping, eating or working out reveals whether the body is producing energy from fat or carbohydrates.

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Hospitals and clinics worldwide offer RQ measurement to help athletes adjust diet and activity for peak levels of fitness. However, the process involves sophisticated equipment, professional analysis of results and an hour’s worth of time – not something that could be done at home or on a daily basis. Lumen, the company cofounded by the Mor sisters and three partners in January 2014, is launching a neat little device that works with an app to analyze breath within seconds and provide a personalized RQ along with suggestions to help you lose weight and optimize workouts. When you wake up in the morning, you take Lumen out of its charging dock and remove its magnetic dust cap, open the app on your phone, and begin the two-step process guided by the app: Inhale a single breath with Lumen in your mouth, hold your breath until prompted and then exhale into the device. In half a minute, you’ll know if you should plan a high-carb or low-carb day depending on your planned level of activity. Using machine learning, the device gets to know you better with repeated use, automatically. There’s no food tracking or guesswork involved. -- More...

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