As gross as it may sound, urine tasting was actually a job once. Before the advancement in the field of medical sciences and the introduction of laboratories, doctors actually relied on their five senses to determine the health of their patients, especially the diabetic ones. Then came the dipsticks, pee cups, and other med gadgets, and life became a whole lot easier for the blue-collar workers. The latest gadget that could possibly be a big game changer is U-Scan by Withings.
Announced at CES 2023, the health-tracking device is designed to be placed inside a toilet bowl. The pebble-shaped device conducts a health analysis and gives accurate updates on a person’s metabolic and reproductive well-being. It captures urine inside the bowl and analyzes it internally with built-in cartridges. It is a versatile cartridge-based system that detects, measures, and analyzes multiple biomarkers in urine.
Designed to be compatible with most western-style toilets, it does urine analysis at home and saves you from the hassle of visiting doctors time and again. The user can check their urine reports via the Withings Health Mate app and share them with the doctor.
While the main focus would be on monitors, television, and EVs, I personally believe that in the coming years, we are going to see a dramatic shift with more emphasis on health and fitness gadgets. A lot of folks on the internet are calling the gadget a miniaturized health lab. I second that thought. Whether you are dehydrated, pregnant, or dealing with UTIs; Withing’s U-Scan could actually help you decipher a lot of information on a daily basis.
The company will unveil two different versions of the device at CES 2023, with one (U-Scan Nutri Balance) primarily focusing on monitoring your nutrition and metabolism to provide updates on your kidney health. The second version (U-Scan Cycle Sync) emphasizes women’s health and keeps a track of their menstrual cycles. In addition, it measures urine pH levels and reproductive health.
You might wonder if too many people peeing in the same toilet could mess up the reports. Isn’t there a chance of a mix-up case? Well, it’s a valid question but Withings states that “U-Scan has Stream ID feature that uses radar sensors to identify an individual’s urine stream signature, by detecting the movement and distance of the stream.”
If you ask me, I think some chunk of information is better than none at all. Despite that, I’d like to inform our readers that there are multiple health tracking metrics available in the market, and if you actually have a health concern you should consult a healthcare professional because it is difficult to find anything actionable from a test like this.
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For European consumers, the U-Scan reader, and both Cycle Sync and Nutri Balance cartridges will be available in the second quarter of 2023 costing around $530. As far as the US is concerned, it is yet to get a nod from FDA.
