Hey - What About Us Humans?

I obviously have far too much time on my hands!

After I completed my annual medical in May this year, I decided - once again - that it was time I started thinking about my weight. I set myself a goal, which was to reach a weight I had not seen in 10 years, and was around a level a kindly doctor had set for me some 25 years earlier. But I gave myself a generous amount of time in which to do it. Losing weight quickly, I had always been led to believe, was merely a recipe for putting it back on just as quickly. Thus 40lbs (18.1kgs) in 10 months, I thought would be a sensible approach. The diet was working reasonably well, but it would have benefited more from an increase in exercise levels, I admit that. Then I got a virus!!

Now, I would not recommend hunting out a virus in replacement for diet and exercise, but it worked for me! Weight loss accomplished - 4 months early, but I am now getting paranoid about putting it all back too soon. Of course increasing exercise would be a good start. (Yes, I will!).

And then I read about the Japanese and their obese pets!

I have to say, the Japanese seem to be great inventors - particularly of things slightly odd. Little umbrellas for your shoes in the rain, or a real boon for Hong Kong users of the Mass Transit Railway - Subway Sleepers -

I presume the message gives the lady's destination, so someone can wake her up. (yeh; right!)

But back to the pets!

The Japanese, in recent years, have started to value having pets around and dogs in particular, but they are letting the dogs get too fat. So what's the answer? A Wandant or canine obesity monitor. (According to "The Times", Wan means "woof" in Japanese).

The concept is simple. A pedometer hangs from the dog’s collar and as the dog moves around and does what dogs do all day, the data is gathered and stored on a cloud service. The dog owner can then access the health info via their laptop or smartphone while on the go.

The dog obesity monitor records temperature changes, weight, number of steps taken, the amount of food the dog has eaten and even its "stool condition".

Well, it sounds great for dog owners - but what about us humans (maybe ignoring the stool condition)? The development of something helpful for the growing band of obese people who would actually rather like some "assistance" in reducing weight - and it being done graphically. And obesity is now not just a "westerners" phenomenon. It is becoming apparent in Asia too - thanks (or no thanks, actually!) to the introduction of western-style diets, and serving portions.

What about it inventors?