By Richard Shope, Ed.D.
Flashback, 1969年5月:我在明尼苏达州高中地区网球锦标赛中取得了进步，到了那个地步, had I won that afternoon, I would have competed in the finals. The match went to the third set. 这是明尼苏达州一个看似温暖的下午，阳光明媚，微风轻拂. I had worked up a sweat as I played hard for every point. I seemed to have the edge. My opponent had a temper. 我抓住了情绪上的优势，我喜欢旋转球和出其不意的吊球，这是一场力量占主导地位的比赛. As it turned out, something went wildly haywire. As the set inched closer to the end, I began to feel cramps. In my legs. In my arms. In my hands. I shook them off to finish the match…but they took their toll. I lost. A few minutes later, things went even more haywire. 我的教练无助地看着我全身一次又一次抽筋, disabling me as I sought to walk it off, as I gulped down water. What was going on? In a word: dehydration.
We all know the importance of water. Our bodies are comprised of 75% water. Even without the pressure of high performance athletics, 我们需要全天为我们的系统补充水分，为我们的细胞提供线粒体在细胞水平上产生代谢能量的原料.
How do we know when we need more water? By the time we feel thirsty, we are likely already dehydrated. But how can we know exactly how dehydrated we are? Well, we can check the color of our urine. The clearer the urine, the more hydrated we are. The yellower, the darker, the more dehydrated we are. In our everyday life, these informal measures are good enough, but the more engaged we are in high intensity workouts, high performance athletics, or intense outside work conditions, the more we need better data, more rapidly obtained.
High school athletics, College athletics, Professional athletics, or any High Performance Physical Activity. As the stakes intensify, performers, players, and coaches alike need to know in real-time– time enough to intervene, 如果有必要的话——避免可能危及健康的急性发作, or even one’s life, at risk.
感谢上帝，我们有像布莱恩·本德这样敬业的研究人员和企业家, 谁把开发创新技术以解决重大问题作为自己的使命. 由美国国家科学基金会(NSF)和美国国立卫生研究院(NIH)的小企业创新研究(SBIR)资助，以及生物科学企业家洛杉矶BioStart训练营的精明参与, 他和他在摄入量健康的团队已经成功开发并推向市场的实时水合监测产品, known as InFlow, initially to serve the world of professional and college athletics.
Michael and in 2019, 参加了第五届足彩外围网站生物科学创业训练营, directed by Dr. Howard Xu. LA BioStart provides five weeks of intensive training, 对创建和维持生物科学企业至关重要的指导和具体的商业知识. “参加BioStart项目的一大好处是我们加入了一个长期的网络,” says Bender. “我们已经将团队成员引入团队，以帮助完成技术工作, we’ve shared contacts and resources with other members, 我们不断得到许教授的指导和机会.” Dr. 徐是LA BioStart Bootcamp的创始董事，担任孵化器发展总监 & Programming, 加州州立大学生物科学系微生物学教授, Los Angeles.
在美国国立卫生研究院和美国国家科学基金会的资助下，摄入量健康进入了BioStart训练营，并专注于医疗保健应用. “We were getting positive feedback from doctors,” says Brian. “但没有太多与FDA打交道的经验，也没有通过医疗保健渠道销售, we were facing a huge uphill battle.”
本德说:“在启动BioStart项目后不久，我们就转向了市场和技术. “我们决定做出这一转变的一个重要原因是基于LA BioStart的经验教训和实践过程.”
LA BioStart强调了最佳创业实践以及医疗保健特定挑战，如监管和报销考虑. 这对本德尔的创业公司来说至关重要, 是客户发现——做着发现客户真正想要和需要的侦探工作吗. How viable is a great idea if no one wants or needs it?
Fortunately, Bender recognized that at the outset. 为了进行可行性研究，他向美国国立卫生研究院(National Institutes of Health)寻求并获得了一笔资助，参加了一个名为I-Corps的项目. “在那里，”他说，“我们什么也没做，只是走出大楼，和人们交谈.” Turns out, LA BioStart让他走上了正确的道路，尽管它是I-Corps的缩写, 这是完全相同的过程，有着完全相同的目标，最终对我们取得今天的成就至关重要.”
客户发现访谈导致了与体育界的教练和培训师的对话, 谁已经进行了水合作用测试的常规尿液测试. “The connections instantly clicked, and after much debate, 我们的团队决定换一种方式，看看他们是否可以服务于这个市场应用程序.”
So, what is the innovation that Intake health brings to the world? 先进的尿液检测技术，用于各种健康和保健应用, to minimize, or completely eliminate, user testing burden, in order to make data collection as simple as possible.
How does it work? 这是一种通过吸盘连接在小便池上的装置，它可以从运动员身上吸收尿液，并发出光信号, instantly communicates the level of hydration: Green means ready-to-go; Yellow means replenish immediately; Red means replenish immediately and keep replenishing. The system resets immediately for the next person. Right now it’s just for those who can use a urinal, but not to worry, a toilet version is coming soon.
摄入量健康很快验证了他们的新技术方法，因为他们继续采访客户，以确保他们能够满足需求并调整适当的产品功能. 经过几次产品迭代和时间测试，并通过生产制造过程, research results demonstrate high fidelity accuracy, 给运动员一个快速的水合状态和采取什么措施来补充.
Intake Health officially launched their product, InFlow, in August, 2022, 并很快开始向所有主要职业联盟的球队销售产品, including the NFL, NBA, NHL, MLB, and MLS, as well as NCAA college athletic programs.
“It’s still early,” Bender says, “但我们很高兴看到我们的产品进入市场，看到客户的回应是‘我们的玩家喜欢它!’”
随着摄入量健康不断扩大生产和销售活动在体育市场, 公司的下一个目标是利用流入拓展新市场，并继续研究和开发新的功能和技术，以继续其延长健康寿命的使命.
For inquiries, please contact Brian Bender, [email protected]