Self monitoring in sports health

HUNTINGDON, U.K. - Sept. 24, 2013 - PRLog -- Aseptika Limited, Huntingdon, Cambridgeshire, UK: Steve (age 34) is a triathlete who takes his training and preparation for this demanding sport seriously. He trains up to 6 times a week and on average spends around 2-3 hours swimming, cycling or running each day.

Steve is a member of RacingTNT Triathlon (http://www.novicecoaching.com/index.php) Team in Sheffield and regularly competes in competitions in his spare time around the UK and supports young people wanting to take up this sport.

Part of the training and competition is to take part in open water swims, usually in lakes or reservoirs. While exhilarating, athletes like Steve can suffer health problems as a result of infections acquired during exposure to these water sources. Everyday bacteria like Pseudomonas aeruginosa and E. coli exist in nature and under some circumstances, can be contracted by swimmers.

Steve had a history of mild asthma when he was young and no longer needs to take medication for the condition, but has suffered occasional ear and chest infections following other open water swims.

As part of his very strict regime of nutrition and health management for sports, Steve has been tracking his lung function, using the Activ8rlives Peak Flow meter, which measures the capacity and performance of the lungs. There are two parameters measured: rate at which air can be expelled by our lungs (Peak Flow) and the rate of expiration at the one second point (FEV1) after the blowout into the small reader has started. Together, these parameters can be used to compare the performance of our lungs against average values for our gender, age and weight and can be tracked over time to see how well we are.

By regularly measuring his Peak Flow, Steve identified a significant decrease in function of 15% after a recent swim in open water and while he did not feel particularly unwell, he was concerned that he may have picked up another chest infection. He was examined by his GP who could not detect any signs of the chest sounds that are usually associated with lung infections, but after reviewing Steve’s self monitored data, was sufficiently concerned to prescribe a course of oral antibiotics. GPs only prescribe antibiotics now in cases where they believe there can be a clear benefit to the patient, because over use has led to a generation of resistance in these everyday bacteria.

Following the prescribed course of medication, Steve’s Peak Flow and FEV1 increased and returned to their former values, indicating complete recovery of lung function.

“I have to admit that I was very pleased that my GP listened to me and valued my approach to self-monitoring at home,” explained Steve. While I felt OK, my chest did feel a bit tight but at that stage it was very mild. When I saw the decreased values I was recording at home and tracking on the Activ8rlives website, it gave me the confidence to ask for an examination by my GP and the evidence I shared helped her make what turned out to be a good decision for me. Early treatment with antibiotics rather than just waiting to see how I got on probably prevented a full blown infection developing, which takes months to get over. The summer is a busy time because this is when all of the triathlon events are organised and I didn’t want to miss any. When I am competing, I can’t afford to get sick.”

For more information on Aseptika Ltd and Activ8rlives and products, please visit: www.activ8rlives.com

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Activ8rlives and Activ8rlives.com are trademarks of Aseptika Ltd.

About Activ8rlives

Activ8rlives provides tools for self monitoring with the ability to receive eMentoring from the family group, self help groups or from clinical teams. The Company offers a range of health monitors, from step counters through to electronic “smart” scales, smartphone food diary apps to peak flow meters and pulse oximeters. The online communities combine empowerment through self monitoring with the added dynamic of group support and motivation. Groups can be led by clinicians or used to provide one to one coaching, to improve clinical outcomes.

Users can track: physical activity, body measurements and weight, lung function and cardiovascular health, blood glucose, HbA1c, cholesterol, C-reactive protein, International Normalized Ratio (INR), medication and bacterial infection markers. Custom trackers such as: dress size, training sessions, pool laps per session, runs per week, sleep duration, allergy reactions, mood, fertility, temperature - in fact anything that can be measured – can be created. Users can join groups of like-minded people or set up their own group to share their successes with family, friends or colleagues in a secure environment. Activ8rlives is free to use and there are no joining or subscription fees.

Caption 1: Steve a 34 year old triathlete who self monitors his sports health via the Activ8rlives.com website taking daily measurements with a Peak Flow meter, which measures the capacity and performance of his lung function.

For press information, please contact:

Jessica Auton, Marketing Director, Aseptika Ltd (Activ8rlives)

jessica.auton@aseptika.com

Direct +44 (0)1480 352 821

Mobile +44 (0)7455 922 122