mescan body scanner: just a gadget or high-tech for your insides?
A company from Hamburg promises nothing less than a smart, holistic revolution. Its body scanner claims to be the portal to a new dimension in the analysis of muscle mass and the like. It’s all about the smart optimisation of training, nutrition and regeneration.
We’re talking about uncovering the details of a person’s body – or in this case, an athlete’s – and bearing them all. What’s a nightmare for some is of great benefit to others. Training provides the best results when the athlete understands their own body as well as possible. But how is body composition actually measured with muscle and fat mass, water and bones? For example, with so-called bioelectrical impedance analysis, BIA for short.
On the trail of body composition with electricity or X-rays
Weak alternating current with a high frequency is passed through the body and the different resistances that fat, muscles, etc. offer result in values that are used to calculate body composition. However, some sports medicine and science specialists dispute how accurate the BIA actually is.
Until recently, molecular and muscular biologist Claudio Viecelli from ETH Zurich conducted his research on the Irchel campus, which was home to an impressive device from General Electric: the Lunar iDXA. The name stands for «dual-energy X-ray absorptiometry» and measures body composition with X-rays rather than electricity. According to the ETH, this measurement is much more accurate and, compared to the BIA, represents the gold standard in body analysis.
Not least because of this, professional athletes such as Swiss ski aces Wendy Holdener and Michelle Gisin use it. And I also managed to convince myself of the advantages of the DXA.
A self-scan with mescan
The device from the Hamburg brand Cardioscan also looks impressive at first glance. The «mescan» was introduced in 2020 for the fitness industry and is now also available in specialist sports shops. It was recently presented at the world’s largest sports fair in Munich and recognised by a specialist jury.
At second glance, however, the Hamburgers are only human. Because the mescan works via BIA. The body scan device is designed to measure a person’s heart rate variability, stress levels, body composition and metabolism within just 45 seconds. According to the manufacturer, this allows it to provide important data on a person’s current state of health and optimise training, nutrition and regeneration.
Source: Patrick Bardelli
However, according to the expert jury, mescan doesn’t stop there. Based on the body data, the corresponding software also provides individual fitness recommendations via an app. The big advantage of mescan: as the name suggests, the analysis can be carried out independently, without an appointment with a doctor or fitness coach. However, interpreting the measured values without the support of a specialist is extremely complex.
So is this the holistic revolution promised by the manufacturer or just another fitness gadget? The truth is probably somewhere in between. Bioelectrical impedance analysis has established itself in determining body composition. mescan also determines values such as blood oxygen saturation and heart rate variability, which is what many sports watches from Garmin, Polar or Coros do today. In my opinion, if you want to determine your body composition as precisely as possible and would like a tailor-made fitness or training plan as a result, you should go for a Lunar iDXA by General Electric. Incidentally, a device like this has recently been installed in Zurich at Sumu.
Header image: Patrick Bardelli32 people like this article
Patrick Bardelli
Senior Editor
Patrick.Bardelli@digitecgalaxus.chFrom radio journalist to product tester and storyteller, jogger to gravel bike novice and fitness enthusiast with barbells and dumbbells. I'm excited to see where the journey'll take me next.
