The cost of poor gut health worldwide is enormous. There are more than a billion people affected worldwide which costs healthcare systems around £9.5 billion annually, even higher than that for heart disease or mental health. Not only do digestive health problems cost incredible amounts, but they are also a leading cause of work absences. In the UK alone nine million people live with Irritable Bowel Syndrome (IBS), just one of the common gut health disorders. These are people who have waited on average 6.5 years to get a diagnosis, a process involving numerous GP visits, numerous rounds of diagnostic tests that give no answers, and often failed fad diets.
Our CEO Billy Boyle spoke to the Express for a recent article titled ‘OMED Health’s breath tests: Hope for patients ravaged by gut problems’ to further discuss the global issue of poor gut health as well as the power of OMED Health’s latest technology, which uses breath analysis to help patients get the support that they need to take back control of their gut health.
In this interview, Billy explained how OMED Health came into its own. OMED Health is a division of Owlstone Medical, the world leader in breath collection and analysis. Billy stated that, “We knew our cutting-edge technology could provide tangible solutions for consumers and better tools for doctors to support patients”, and with gut health being a large-scale issue worldwide, OMED Health was developed. The OMED Health Breath Analyzer is soon to be launched and measures the levels of methane gas and hydrogen in exhaled breath, which are reliable indicators of someone’s digestive health. Billy also mentioned that breath samples alone are not enough, and in fact, building a bigger picture of one’s lifestyle is crucial. Therefore, the integrated app supports the device by tracking symptoms and potential triggers over time, which further helps users to understand their underlying issues such as food intolerances, IBS and small intestinal bacteria overgrowth (SIBO). A major issue that Billy highlighted is the numerous tests on the market which leave patients in the dark about the results and the next steps that they should take to achieve improved gut health. At OMED Health, our network of gastrointestinal experts will interpret the data from the device and app, can prescribe treatment should it be needed, and provide support, allowing users to make informed decisions about their daily lives.
If you would like to find out more information, you can read the full interview via the Express. Or you can sign up to the waitlist to find out how you can get your OMED Health Breath Analyzer and App to improve your gut health.
