Smart acupuncture pen checks if you’re getting enough vitamins

Vitastiq allows anyone to track their vitamin and mineral levels through a handheld device and app that blends scientific data with thousands of years of acupuncture wisdom.

Regular readers of Springwise will have noticed that the number of different health tracking products hitting the market in recent months has exploded. They’re increasingly enabling consumers to perform their own health check-ups at home, with devices such as Cue offering a mini laboratory-in-a-box that can track 5 different healthcare metrics at a molecular level, and Peek Vision — the smartphone app for eye examinations — enabling roving doctors take a full eye exam anywhere.

Similarly, Vitastiq is now allowing anyone to track their vitamin and mineral levels through a handheld device and app that blends scientific data with thousands of years of acupuncture wisdom.

The device itself is a consumer-friendly handheld electrode which enables users to examine their vitamin levels and spot deficiencies before physical symptoms occur. It plugs straight into the headphone socket of any smartphone and works by sending a small electrical current through acupuncture points on the user’s body. This may sound painful, but it isn’t. In fact, it’s a standard element of the EAV — electroacupuncture — methodology, which has been used worldwide for over 20 years.

When they press the Vitastiq against their skin, the data is logged to the user’s smartphone through the free app, where they can monitor up to 30 changing vitamin and mineral requirements. An in-app tutorial guides users through the relevant reading spots one at a time to ensure they get an accurate and complete reading of the body.

Watch the video below to see the device in action:

The Vitastiq has already surpassed its target on Indiegogo, with the campaign set to end on 23 January. The product is expected to launch in March 2015 retailing for USD 99. Are there any other respected traditional medicines which could be given a modern makeover by new technologies?