AIRE Breath Sensor for FODMAP

Foodsniffer (not the AIRE)

A start-up called FOODMARBLE is launching a breath sensor.
Called the AIRE Breath Sensor.
It is designed for the FODMAP diet.
Detects : HYDROGEN levels ?
Hydrogen is thought to be the main gas given off during gut fermentation.
Hydrogen is used as the gas tested for 'small intestine bacterial overgrowth'.

Possible interest to those with systemic body odor/halitosis :
The blog current view is that FMO3 enzyme may be the weakness for most type of SYSTEMIC BODY ODOR (SBO).
Many of the gases from gut fermentation are probably FMO3 substrates (e.g. certain sulfides/amines).
Many with 'fecal body odor' feel they have 'gut dysbiosis'.
Something like the AIRE may help them track their 'dysbiosis' via hydrogen level.



Initial thoughts about the AIRE :
It's version 1. With hindsight it may be regarded as not very good.
BUT, people with SBO will for the foreseeable future need 'sensors' (probably breath sensors).
If it worked, it may be of some use to track 'gut dysbiosis'.
The platform (device for phone, bluetooth etc) is ideal for the consumer. A SBO sensor will be probably the same (but detect different gases e.g. dimethylsulfide).
Great price ($99 intro price). At that price it's worth a gamble.
(note : I already bought the 'foodsniffer' and 'mint breathometer' (not arrived after 2 months), so will probably not be buying the AIRE soon).

AIRE Sensor website
Twitter
Daily Mail (dec 16)
Press Release (dec 16)
Business Insider (may 16)

Systemic Body Odor needs a Consumer Sensor :
SBO will need it's own version(s) of a 'sensor'. Once it's known what gases act as biomarkers or to detect all the types of gases that cause SBO. A good 'suspect' would be 'dimethylsulfide'.
Currently such a sensor does not exist for systemic body odor.
Partly as the technology had not reached a decent level yet.
Also it seems sensor makers are only realising there was a consumer market for say 'halitosis' sensors, or hydrogen sensors. More because of start-ups getting in the market via crowdfunding.
with SBO, the person usually cannot smell themselves (my opinion, they are usually transient and the brain ignores it's own circulating smells).

One thing is for sure, SBO will need a sensor that detects SBO gases.

Currently we do not know what these gases are (apart from trimethylamine).
It's likely sulfides like dimethylsulfide will be suspects.

Fecal Body Odor :
Probably it's unknown exactly what gases make fecal smells.
Scientists will have a good idea of suspects, but papers are few and contradictory.
Perhaps for SBO, there may be a wide spectrum of sulfides/amines at any point, but perhaps a handful of 'big players' (e.g. dimethylsulfide) which could then act as 'biomarkers' for a sensor.

Possible 'big players' for Fecal Body Odor (guesses) : 
dimethylsulfide
dimethyldisulfide
methanethiol
cysteamine

FINAL THOUGHTS
The SBO community will need their own 'sensor' as they are 'nose blind' to their own smells.
The tech (and makers will) has not been there for consumer sensors.
But over the last 2 years, both the tech and now we see the will, for consumer sensors is happening.
No sensor maker would currently probably invest in a 'SBO sensor', thinking there is no market.
But other sensors may longterm make the process cheaper.
Many with SBO feel they have 'gut dysbiosis', so a sensor like the AIRE may be worth a gamble.
Keep in mind for AIRE it's version 1 (i.e. early days).  

What SBO needs
1. To find out all (or at least the main) volatiles that cause SBO (exploratory tests).
2. From that info, a diagnostic test.
3. A Sensor(s)
4. A DNA test (probably being superceded by exome/genome tests which are mathing price of single gene tests).
5. Therapies/cures.

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By sysbodyodor

enose sensor, fecal body odor, fmo3, malodor sensor, metabolic malodor, metabolic/systemic malodor

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Fart Tracker sensor device

For systemic body odor/halitosis, a handy sensor is very much needed as most sufferers cannot smell their own malodor. Up until recently the technology has possibly not reached a stage to create such a device, but it seems the technology is getting close.

The 'first version' of the Fart Tracker (officially called CH4) may be something of use to the systemic malodor community, as the impression is most suffer from what is known on the forums as 'fecal body odor' ; so the same types of volatiles that cause fecal smells are likely to be of interest to the 'FBO' community.

CH4 from Rodrigo Narciso on Vimeo.

LINKS

CH4 'official' website
CH4 Kickstarter page
CH4 in Gizmag 

The Fart Tracker seems to be a new project by a graduate student. It is not yet been produced for the consumer, but it is available to pay for a pre-device on Kickstarter ($120 ?).

I have not been able to see what it actually detects. If it just detects wind movement then it would be of no use for systemic malodors, but if it detects certain volatiles such as sulfides, then in theory it may be of some use.

The main thing is that detectors that may detect sulfides and amines that may make up most of the volatiles that people with what I call 'FMO3 malodors' now seem to be at an early stage but hopefully will be a thing of the future.

My suspicion is that a device for the metabolic malodor community would need to detect volatiles such as :
dimethylsulfide
hydrogen sulfide
thiols
and many more which I do not wish to rule out at this stage

So I guess the 'Fart Tracker' is unlikely to be of use to people with metabolic malodors yet, but it's on the right track.    

Things to keep in mind about this device (for metabolic malodor community) :
It depends what is it sensing (volatiles ?)
How sensitive and specific is it ?
It's a start-up project.

What the metabolic/systemic malodor community needs :
A test to detect all volatiles likely to cause metabolic malodor
A DNA test program, initially to test FMO3 gene
A trustworthy sensor device
A cure or at least therapies

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By sysbodyodor

crowdfunding, enose sensor, fecal body odor, fmo3, metabolic malodor, systemic body odor, why can't I smell myself ?

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Foodsniffer for detecting body odor/halitosis ?

Foodsniffer

Recently I purchased one of the first consumer enoses, The Foodsniffer. My purpose is to try it out for detecting volatiles emitted from metabolic malodor.

Foodsniffer is in my opinion the first 'consumer enose' that may have potentially been useful for people with metabolic body odor or halitosis. This is because it is designed to detect chemicals that are emitted by rotting food, which I presume my coincide with some (at least) some of the chemicals emitted in 'FMO3 malodor', which would likely be sulfides and amines.

Check it works with your smartphone :
It is nicely designed and the results show up on a smartphone via bluetooth. Unfortunately the android app does not work with my cheap smartphone, so I can't use it. I'm guessing it will work with Iphones and top-end Samsungs. I am hoping that over the app will someday work with my smartphone if they are constantly programming the app to work with other phones. The app does have an android version.

Update about android compatibility :
Foodsniffer say it works with all android phones that have Android version 4.3.0 (Jelly bean) and if the phone has Bluetooth low energy (BLE) inside.

Update 2 (23 apr 2015) :
I got it working with an android tablet that has 4.3 android (jellybean). It seems to give the results as 'fresh/cook well/spoiled', so the results are not much use at the moment. I am not sure if over time they can improve the result data via software updates. Really someone with metabolic malodor needs to know the result for each suspect volatile.

Any use for people with metabolic malodors ?
I have seen cheap gimmick breath checkers etc, that I have no faith in. This is the first consumer enose to market where I thought it may have some merit, though I have low expectations as this technology seems at an early stage of development. I don't know if it tests for trimethylamine.

It depends if it measures each chemical separately and how well it can detect them. I think in technical terms this would mean 'sensitivity' and specificity'. In effect, how good is the sensor ?

So I could not recommend the Foodsniffer for metabolic malodors but at least it's a start and I'm very hopeful in a few years there will be ideal sniffers for the metabolic malodor community.

Keep in mind it's designed to detect rotting food, not metabolic malodors. I'm hoping some of the same volatiles may be common in both those circumstances.

About Foodsniffer :
The company behind foodsniffer seems to be a small Latvian company perhaps associated with a university. I first saw the device on Indiegogo but they now have their own website. The device was promptly dispatched and the packaging and device itself are very professional and stylish. The device sends the results to an app on your smartphone via bluetooth.

Link : Foodsniffer website

Why might this be useful for metabolic malodors ?
The typical pattern is that someone with metabolic malodors cannot smell themselves. So a trusted device to detect odors is essential for this community in my opinion.

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By sysbodyodor

enose sensor, fecal body odor, metabolic malodor, why can't I smell myself ?

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Peres Foodsniffer available to buy now : Any use for systemic malodor volatiles ?

Will you be buying one ?

About : Peres Foodsniffer for consumers (note : you need a smartphone to read the data)

Context : Could it be used to detect volatiles emitted by people with metabolic/systemic malodor problems ? (such as dimethylsulfide ?)

My current view :  I guess it should be able to. It says it can detect 100 or more VOC's and I'm guessing that many 'food waste' volatiles will be the same volatiles emitted in 'FMO3 malodor syndrome'. But this is a guess

Conclusion :
It's $120 in the USA/EU. Consider buying it as a metabolic malodor detector as a total gamble and could be no use to us. But if it works it could act as a 'sniffer' for the metabolic malodor patient who normally cannot smell themselves (self-anosmia)

Peres Foodsniffer can be bought on their website : link

Cost (Feb 2015) : $120 EU/USA : $135 elsewhere

My initial comment :
At this stage in the understanding of metabolic malodors, which are caused by unmetabolized  volatiles circulating in the bloodstream/lymph etc, it is essential for the sufferer to have an electronic device that can detect the malodors (volatiles). Up until now there has seem to have been no device suitable for detecting volatiles in realtime for consumers. Hopefully this is about to change as the technology may finally be ready for this purposre.

I think a few companies are near to marketing such devices. The first I have heard of that's 'consumer-ready' is the Peres Foodsniffer which is due to ship in mid-March.

There are 2 things that are important about a sensor for metabolic malodor detection capabilities :
Sensitivity (how well it detect volatiles, i.e. at what levels)
Specifity (what volatiles it detects)

I have no idea about these 2 factors for the Peres. I couldn't find any data on their website

However I am hopeful it might be useful as a first generation step to a metabolic maldoor sensor device but I may be wrong

Final comment for the metabolic malodor community :
Might be worth buying (as a pioneer) but buy it thinking of it as money possibly written-off.

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By sysbodyodor

enose sensor, fecal body odor, metabolic malodor

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Clinical Breathalyzer that could perhaps detect metabolic malodors

About : Lonestar Portable Analyzer by OwlstoneA breathalyzer that can detect volatiles in the breath

Owlstone have developed a clinical breathalyser that can detect volatiles in the breath to a level of 'parts per billion'. It was developed by the boss for clinical use after his wife died of colon cancer. One way they see it being used is to detect lung cancer early by looking for certain biomarker volatile organic compounds in the breath

What use is this to those with metabolic malodor ?
People with metabolic malodor probably emit volatiles through their skin and breath, so there is probably a 'signature' volatile pattern in their breath. Hopefully this could be detected by the Lonestar.

Why aren't we using it ?
The Lonestar seem to be 'ready to use' but it's a new device and quite big and expensive, so it seems it would probably be more a device that would be used in a clinical setting. Though perhaps it could be bought by the community and say used at a meetup. I have not seen what it can detect but hopefully it is a wide range of volatiles. My suspicion is that those who have 'fecal body odor' probably emit larger amounts of sulfides than normal people.

It seems that Owlstone may also be working on a consumer breath analyzer that would be much more portable and hopefully affordable to the malodor community.      

Links :
Daily Mail article (Feb 2015) on The Lonestar by Owlstone
Daily Mail article (Apr 2014) on a consumer Breathalyzer by Owlstone
Owlstone Lonestar Portable Analyzer

The main needs of the metabolic malodor community
An untargeted urine test that leads to a diagnostic urine test
DNA testing, beginning with FMO3 gene
Breath analyzer
Microbiome DNA test

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By sysbodyodor

enose sensor

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Peres enose for sniffing rotten meat

Post about : 
The Peres enose sensor which is currently in beta phase and had a campaign on Indiegogo last year. Once it is ready for sale it says it will be able to detect Volatile Organic Compounds associated with rotting meat. The beta version was $89 and I think the final version should be around $150, which is affordable. It seems to be a Lithuanian company based in the UK.



What use is this to the metabolic malodor community ?
It would seem likely that some of the VOCs that the Peres enose will detect will be VOCs that people with metabolic malodors may emit. So far I have been unable to find a list of what VOCs it tests for or for what levels. Although I think it will be of some use, I currently presume it will not currently be an 'ideal' consumer enose for metabolic malodor, but I would buy one myself as there are currently no other sensors as close to our needs.

My own view :
Most people with 'metabolic malodor' seem to complain of having 'fecal/flatulent' odors and other malodors associated with humans waste. My guess is that most of these are sulfides and amines that should be oxidized/neutralized by FMO3 enzyme. Possibly some of these sulfides and amines are high in rotting meat too, so there may be some crossover benefit of this enose for the 'fecal body odor' sufferer.

Some sulfides I mean would be dimethylsulfide, dimethyldisulfide, hydrogen sulfide, and presumably others. Also of course a Enose sensor for metbolic malodors would include trimethylamine.

So the Peres enose sensor in it's current form may be of some use to the metabolic malodor community until one specifically for the community is developed.      

How important is an enose to the metabolic malodor community ?
In my opinion it is one of the essential needs. Most people with metabolic malodor cannot smell themselves (it is my belief this is the case in most/all forms of body odor/halitosis) so it would be an essential medical device.

Links:
Peres website
Peres youtube videos
Peres Indiegogo campaign (closed May 2014)
Daily Mail article on Peres (April 2014)

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By sysbodyodor

enose sensor, fecal body odor

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Enose for metabolic malodor : MyDx looks potentially promising

A consumer enose would be a very useful monitoring system for people with metabolic malodors. The MyDx sensor by CDxlife looks like an ideal potential candidate device. It's a device that can be used with a mobile phone via bluetooth. CDxlife is a company spin-off from NASA.

Currently they do not have a sensor for trimethylamine but hopefully they will someday. I would say this is looking to be an ideal tool to suit the needs of metabolic malodors. Until recently such a device seemed to have not been technologically possible (consumer device) but it seems to have got to that stage now.

About the MyDx sensor device
It seems to be in 2 parts. First part is the device, and the second part is plug in sensors that you can buy separately and change. I think it can connect to other devices by bluetooth and USB. There will be a mobile phone app that comes with whatever sensor is bought.

Public interaction :
They seem a very social-media conscious company, which is a big boost. Often such research companies are not very public friendly. In particular they have used Indiegogo to gauge interest. Anyone can use Indiegogo to raise funds for something.

Indiegogo crowdfunding : 
CDxlife used Indiegogo to gauge interest in their device and first sensor. Their first sensor was for cannabis. The campaign was a success and is now closed.
You can see their first Indiegogo crowdfunding campaign here.
MyDx Indiegogo 1st campagin : cannibis

Anyone wanting to inform them of the need for a trimethylamine sensor can contact them via their website.
http://cdxlife.com

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By sysbodyodor

crowdfunding, enose sensor, metabolic malodor, olfactory

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