According to the NIH, more than 10% of the couple experience fertility issues. Femtech (or female technologies) rely on apps, wearables, diagnostics, and other technologies to enhance women’s health. Most of the Femtech companies and startups focus on increasing fertility. By providing menstrual cycles of data and ovulation personalized data, these companies aim at increasing the chances of conception.
A $50 billion market by 2025
Frost & Sullivan conducted a study of the Femtech market drivers and potential. Women are 75% percent more likely to use digital healthcare technologies than men. With an economic contribution of $24 trillion in 2020 and a key role in the family healthcare decision-making process, it comes as no surprise that Femtech will reach $25 billion by 2025.
More than 200 Mobile Fertility Tracker apps (FTA) are available for iOS or Android. Some of them being downloaded more than one hundred million times. Somehow, their reliability as an ovulation calculator has been questioned. A study conducted in 2018 showed that their accuracy of prediction was no better than 21%.
Unless someone is checking ovulation through physical means, like by using an ovulation prediction kit, the cycle app is just providing an estimate of when their fertile days are
Dr. Jessica Chan, Fertility and Reproductive Medicine expert at Cedars-Sinai
To improve the chance of getting pregnant, more reliable technologies are needed. Fertility trackers and bracelets analyze numerous physiological cues that when combined and processed using Artificial Intelligence algorithms. Tracking only the Basal Body Temperature (BBT) is a concept of the past. By providing reliable fertile windows, the chances to conceive are highly increased.
Numerous technologies exist to track the best fertile period and time the ovulation. Being factorial makes it very complex. In this article, we will present some of the Digital Fertility tracking device that have the potential to improve the odds.
Ava fertility bracelet
Tracking your ovulation is complex. Ava is a clever wearable device that is worn at night and track 5 signs of fertility. The tracker has been clinically proven to multiply the odds of being pregnant. By combining the data from its different sensors, Ava will detect in real-time the five monthly optimal days for conception.
Skin temperature
Skin temperature will decrease by 0.2°C after menstruation to increase by half a degree following the ovulation up to the next menstruation. By continuously monitoring the temperature, Ava will act as an ovulation tracker.
Heart Rate Variability
The Heart Rate Variability corresponds to the time between two heartbeats. HRV is under the direct control of the autonomic nervous system. It is a marker of physiological stress. It will typically rise in the follicular phase and falls in the luteal phase.
The luteal phase corresponds to the second phase of the cycle and begins after ovulation up to menstruation. The length of the luteal phase is under the control of hormones such as progesterone.
Breathing Rate
Scientific studies showed that the breathing rate is decreased during the follicular phase that precedes ovulation. It will then increase during the luteal phase.
Of course, during the day, the breathing rate will vary depending on the activities, but it will stabilize at night time between 10 and 25 bpm.
Resting Pulse Rate (RPR)
In partnership with the University of Zurich, Ava’s studies showed that heartbeats per minute when you are completely at rest would change depending on the cycle.
The RPR will be at its low point a couple of days or just before ovulation. During the five days leading to ovulation, RPR will increase up to the mid-luteal phase. The baseline will be reached after menstruation.
Perfusion
Perfusion refers to the flow of blood within your veins and capillaries. It varies depending on the menstrual cycle and is highest during the fertile days while decreasing during the luteal phase.
Sleep Quality
The quality of the sleep and the phase during which the measurements are recorded are critical to ensure accurate results. For the body to be completely at rest, it takes three hours of hours.
By analyzing your sleep and detecting your movements, the fertility tracker will detect when to conduct the relevant analyses.
By combining all of these different data and presenting them in the iOS and Android compatible app, Ava will provide physiologically backed up information about the cycle and the most fertile 5 days of the month.
To summarize
At $279, the Ava Fertility bracelet is not cheap but offers a full solution to track ovulation and fertility. A nice touch is that Ava will refund you if you’re not getting pregnant within 12 months. Fertility awareness is key to increase the odds. By combining various measurements, the Ava Fertility tracker takes the holistic nature of women’s health into account.
Kegg Fertility Tracker
The Kegg egg initially started as an Indiegogo project and brought a new concept in the landscape of fertility and ovulation tracking. The egg can detect the fertile window up to 7 days in advance by directly sensing the vaginal environment’s biochemical modifications.
Using impedance metering, the Kegg egg, when directly inserted in the vagina, will detect the electrolytes levels of cervical fluid. It only takes two minutes to collect the data and send them to the cloud and associated app.
The science behind
Made of medical-grade silicone and gold-plated stainless steel, the egg is especially useful for women with irregular cycles. Cervical fluid is a hydrogel containing mucin molecules, waters, and biochemical compounds such as sodium chloride, proteins, and enzymes.
The change in the cervical fluid is what will preserve the sperm. The production of the cervical fluid is directly under the control of estrogen and progesterone hormones. The fluid impedance will be detected by using very-low level electrical pulses and the fertile window assessed.
All women are different, and ovulation does not occur in the same period. The principle of measuring the internal physiological changes that accompany ovulation, the Kegg egg puts science at the center.
Easy to use
The Kegg comes with an app that connects to the egg. Only 2 minutes per day are needed to insert and record the biochemical changes—the Kegg egg doubles as a pelvic floor exercise device.
Once the electrolytes levels are recorded, the data will synchronize with the app and allow for tracking the cycle. The measurement process is completely painless.
The Kegg 2-in-2 fertility tracker costs $275, which is in the same range as the other devices. The company also offers the possibility to test the product for 100 days and issue a full refund if the product does not satisfy the user.
Mira
The San Francisco based company uses a different approach and actually really track the levels of hormones at the basis of ovulation. This is the same method used 50 years ago by fertility doctors who injected morning pee into rabbits and checked their ovaries. An increase of Lutheine hormone (LH) correlates with ovulation and will help define the most fertile 2-3 days of the l cycle.
Mira is the only FDA approved, and CE marked fertility tracker on the market. The core principles are simple and sound. The whole concept is to assess the morning levels of hormones in the morning pee using the incest strips.
By testing the daily levels of LH hormones and combining the readings with an AI algorithm to personalize the change in pattern, Mira is a scientifically proven method to assess the best conception period. The results will appear on the associated iOS or Android app. for better tracking.
The company claims that the results are 99 percent accurate. Being more on the diagnostic side of fertility makes the whole difference. Mira comes for $199.99 with 10 strips included. Additional test wands sell for $40 for 20 of them.
