Dehydration is over-rated. There was no scientific basis when the U.S Health and Nutrition Board’s 1945 recommended that adults drink 84.5 ounces a day, which most people referred to then as now as “eight glasses a day.” According to the University of Michigan, even in 1945 people ignored the Board’s follow-on sentence, “Most of this quantity is contained in prepared foods.” A widely-cited University of Florida study that stated 75% of Americans are chronically dehydrated also recommended daily fluid intake levels of just 13 ounces for men and nine ounces for women. Regardless of the actual need for extra hydration for healthy people, some people need to track their hydration levels. Serious athletes, residents or visitors in exceptionally hot and dry regions, and people with very specific medical conditions must be aware of their hydration levels.
BSX Technologies’ eponymous LVL wristband wearable uses infrared light technology to measure hydration and heart rate, both in real time. According to the developer, the wristband also measures activity by tracking steps, distance, and calories. The LVL reportedly tracks sleep including REM levels and “deep sleep metrics.” If users input their mood in an LVL-associated iOS or Android smartphone app on an ongoing basis, over time algorithms will predict how activity, sleep, and hydration — all as measured by the LVL — affect their mood.
The LVL is scheduled to ship in the summer of 2018. Preorders are available now on the company website.
