Food scanners are set to make a bold impact on the food and health industry. The technology is being hailed as the latest solution to allergies, obesity and the world’s food safety problem by two leading tech firms.
The Scio and Tellspec scanners either come in pocket-size or a mobile app that scan foods at a molecular level for macro-nutrients and contaminants, and provide information on food fraud, food adulteration or food quality.
Not only can the technology give users a complete breakdown of exactly what’s in the products they buy to avoid certain ingredients, but can give full breakdowns of nutritional values, calorie count and other benefits.
With allergies and stomach issues on the rise, including irritable bowel syndrome and diverticulitis, watching what you eat has never been as important as it is now.
According to Food Allergy Research and Education (FARE), researchers estimate that up to 15 million Americans have food allergies and it affects 1 in every 13 children. The economic cost of children’s food allergies is nearly $25 billion per year.
Food scanners can read the chemical make-up of foods, give warnings and steer uses away from allergy inducing edibles by using pre-saved information regarding the user’s dietary needs.
Food scanning technology in pocket-size or as a mobile app, scans food for nutrients, calories, and ingredients that may cause allergies
The technology is also being used in the health and fitness sector, to help identify foods that cause obesity and weight gain.
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, more than one-third, 36.5%, of U.S. adults have obesity. The estimated annual medical cost of obesity in the U.S. was $147 billion in 2008; the medical costs for people who are obese were $1,429 higher than those of normal weight.
The Scio food scanner scans meat, dairy, fruit, and vegetables for “macro-nutrient information” and can “track your body fat composition to help achieve your health and fitness goals.”
The Tellspec Food Sensor can pinpoint contamination of the food at any stage, from production to consumption, identify what produces bacteria, viruses, parasites, chemical agents and toxins, which eventually cause food-borne diseases.
Tellspec developers claim that “exposure to these contaminants is linked to disease such as cancer, obesity, and even neurological disorders”, it is therefore fundamentally important to be completely aware of what is in the foods we eat.
So, as these technology firms help create a clean food revolution by providing food security for all to “spark a vital change in the way people eat and the way food is currently grown and manufactured”, those suffering with food allergies and obesity are finally able to use an effective tool to track their dietary needs and improve their health.
