Top 5 women’s health gadgets for today

There’s a whole new bunch of technology tools being developed called FemTech and these devices are designed just for women and increasingly, by women. Take Swiss startup Ava, which is a device women wear on their wrist that tracks ovulation. Ava was co-founded by Leavon Bidder who runs the U.S. side of the business. There’s devices to help with building pelvic muscles to helping with breast milk pumping. Here are some really cool FemTech devices on the market already.

AvaWomen: A small device that looks like a bracelet, it can help women track fertility, ovulation and pregnancy. Unlike period trackers, this device takes a whole new, scientific approach based on research from a Swiss hospital. It’s worn at night to help track sleep patterns in line with your cycle. Information is accessed on your smartphone. The device is available in Canada via their website.

Bellabeat Leaf Urban Health Tracker (or just Bellabeat): This nicely designed device that looks like a leaf can be worn on the wrist, as a clip or as a necklace. Designed to be discreet, it will track sleep and menstrual cycles, breathing, heart rate and sleep quality. It connects to an app on your smartphone with a nicely designed interface that’s easy to read.

Embr Wave: This device can be worn by men as well, but women with a lot of temperature fluctuations may find it especially useful. You wear it on your wrist and it provides a small dab of heat or coolness, depending on what you need. Research has shown that just this little bit of temperature change can make a difference. Check it out here.

Willow Pump: Want to be a little more discreet about breastfeeding and make it easier to collect your breast milk? This is a very quiet device that collects breast milk easily. It’s also dishwasher safe for cleaning. And yes, it connects to your smartphone. It can show how much milk you produce, track volumes and pumping times. Find them here.

Livia: Suffering from bad menstrual cramps? This device claims to be the medication free answer! It’s discreet and can tuck into your waistband. Much like a TENS machine, but designed specifically for women and menstrual cramps. Don’t worry about batteries; it charges via USB so you can charge it pretty much anywhere. Find Livia here!

There’s more FemTech devices on the market and soon to be launched. Check back with us and we’ll keep you informed!

You can read more about emerging technologies for women right here!

Author: Giles Crouch is a digital anthropologist and is on the management team at Optimyz. He has been interviewed extensively by Canadian news media on the intersection of people and technology.