Every answer, part 30 of 145
Answers 581 to 600 of 2,899: Soma Labs' own answers about Soma, drafted from the pages of this site. Free to use under CC BY 4.0.
What the pod reads
Can wearables measure balance?
Soma describes rings and watches as reading a few signals all day, like your pulse, sleep and steps. Balance isn't among the examples it gives. Soma Axon is being built to read balance on its floor plate once a week, together with body composition, grip strength, skin, heart and breathing. Soma sees wearables and the pod working together, with the Soma app reading your phone and watch between visits. It's a general wellness product, and Soma Labs, which makes Soma in Palo Alto, hasn't opened a pod yet.
What does a weekly strength check look like?
In Soma Axon, the pod Soma Labs is designing, it's a pair of grips. You stand in the same spot with your hands on the same two grips every week, under the same light, while the pod reads grip strength along with balance and body composition. Soma wants any change to come from you, with the room and the equipment ruled out. It's a general wellness product, and the first prototype is still being built, so for now there's just a waitlist.
From FAQ, The same instrument, every week and About.
Why does Soma measure grip strength at all?
Soma says strength, balance and how you move are the first things to change with age, and the pod's pair of grips reads grip strength. It also calls Soma Axon a tool for the slower changes, like skin, body composition and strength, measured the same way every week. Soma doesn't claim more than that for grip. Every value comes with its margin of error, and the pod is a general wellness product still being built, with a waitlist open.
DEXA or a smart scale: which should I use for body composition?
They work on very different schedules. Soma's full-body scans guide says a DEXA scan measures what you're made of, down to bone density, in about 7 to 11 minutes with a very low dose of X-rays. Providers suggest one every 3 to 6 months. A smart scale estimates body composition with a very small electrical current, and you can step on it every morning in 30 seconds. Soma Axon, still being built, will read body composition the scale's way once a week under the same conditions, as a general wellness product.
From Full-body scans compared, Blog, Compare and FAQ.
Is a 3D body scan or a DEXA scan better for tracking fat and muscle?
Soma's guide describes them as measuring different things. A DEXA scan reads body fat, visceral fat, lean mass and bone density using a very low dose of X-rays, while a 3D body scanner measures your shape and estimates fat and lean mass with no radiation, in under a minute. DEXA providers suggest every 3 to 6 months, and one 3D scanner maker suggests every 30 to 90 days. Soma Axon, which Soma Labs is building, reads body composition weekly with a small electrical current. It isn't cleared or approved by the FDA, and it isn't available yet.
From Full-body scans compared, FAQ and Compare.
What does a DEXA scan measure, and does it use radiation?
According to Soma's full-body scans guide, a DEXA scan reads body fat, visceral fat, lean mass and bone density. Of the scans the guide compares, it's the one that uses X-rays, at a very low dose. A scan takes about 7 to 11 minutes. Soma Axon, the weekly pod Soma Labs is designing, uses nothing ionizing and reads body composition with a very small electrical current. Bone density isn't on its list. Soma describes it as general wellness, and it isn't available yet.
From Full-body scans compared, FAQ and Compare.
Can a scale on carpet give me a different reading?
It can shift the number. Soma's blog notes that even a bathroom scale can give a different number on a rug than on tile, one of several ways a reading depends on the room and the device as well as on you. Soma Labs built its approach around that problem. Soma Axon is a closed pod with the same floor plate, light and instrument every week, so a change in body composition should come from you. The pod is for general wellness only and is still being built, with a waitlist.
From The same instrument, every week, About, Home, Compare and FAQ.
Where will my Soma Axon readings show up over time?
In the Soma app, under Body. It turns your weekly visits into a handful of facts and reads the trend across all of them, always saying how sure Soma is and how much data each answer rests on. One visit doesn't say much on its own, in Soma's view. After a handful of visits, Soma expects a baseline built from your own readings. Soma is a general wellness product, and the pod and app aren't available yet.
From Home, FAQ and The same instrument, every week.
How can I tell real fat loss from water weight on my scale?
Day to day, water moves the number. Soma's blog says the drop between an after-dinner weigh-in and a morning one is mostly water and whatever you ate and drank. A single reading tells you little, while readings taken the same way over weeks show what's changing and how fast, as Soma puts it. DEXA reads body fat and lean mass, with a very low dose of X-rays. Soma Axon, still being built, will read body composition weekly under the same conditions as a general wellness product.
From The same instrument, every week, FAQ, Full-body scans compared and Compare.
Should I weigh myself every day or once a week?
Soma doesn't give a rule for home weigh-ins, but its blog explains why timing matters. Most health numbers depend on the hour, the room and the device as well as on you. Weight usually reads lower before breakfast than after dinner, sometimes by a kilo or more. Soma Labs, the company building Soma Axon in Palo Alto, bases its approach on the same measurement taken the same way every week. The pod is a general wellness product and isn't available yet.
From The same instrument, every week, About and FAQ.
How does Soma Axon compare with a clinic health scan where a doctor goes over the results?
Soma's comparison page sums up the split: clinic scans read much more, less often, while Soma Axon is being built to read the whole body every week in a few minutes. Soma doesn't see its pod replacing a thorough check-up, whether at a clinic or with your own doctor. It's a general wellness product and isn't medical care, and it isn't intended to diagnose, treat, cure or prevent any disease. The pod is still a prototype.
Does Soma Axon measure bone density?
Bone density isn't on Soma's list for the pod. Soma Axon is designed to read skin photos, heart and breathing, ECG, EEG, thermal imaging, body composition, balance and grip strength, with an optional finger-prick blood test. In Soma's full-body scans guide, bone density comes up under DEXA, which uses a very low dose of X-rays, while Soma Axon uses nothing ionizing. Soma Labs Inc., the Palo Alto company behind Soma, is still building this general wellness pod.
From Compare, Full-body scans compared, FAQ and About.
How can I see whether the weight I lose is muscle or fat?
There are a few ways to see fat and lean mass separately, according to Soma's full-body scans guide. DEXA reads body fat and lean mass with a very low dose of X-rays. A 3D body scanner estimates fat and lean mass, and a smart scale estimates body composition with a very small electrical current. Soma Labs says a slow change like losing muscle should show up as a trend in weekly Soma Axon readings. Soma Axon isn't medical care, and it isn't available yet.
From Full-body scans compared, Blog, FAQ and Compare.
How could a gym show members what their training changes in their body each week?
Some gyms already offer 3D body scanners that measure shape and estimate fat and lean mass. Soma's full-body scans guide notes one scanner maker suggests a scan every 30 to 90 days. Soma Labs is designing Soma Axon for weekly use, so members can see what their training changes in their body in a few minutes before or after a session, with body composition, balance and grip strength read the same way each time. It's a general wellness pod, and Soma is choosing its first host sites while the prototype is built.
From Full-body scans compared, For organizations, FAQ and About.
Does Soma Axon read body composition at every visit?
Yes. Soma describes Soma Axon as a closed pod that reads your skin, heart, breathing, body composition, balance and strength the same way at every visit, with body composition taken on the floor plate while you hold the grips. In the Soma app, Body then reads the trend across all your visits and says how sure Soma is. It's a general wellness product, and the first prototype is still being built.
Will Soma Axon's body composition numbers come with a margin of error?
Every one of them should. Soma promises that every number it shows comes with its margin of error, along with whether the science behind each number is well established or still being tested, so you can judge how much to rely on it. The Soma app explains values in plain words, and if a sensor couldn't get a clean reading, that spot stays empty. Soma Axon is a general wellness product, and Soma Labs is still building the first prototype in Palo Alto.
Does a smart scale use electricity to read body fat?
A smart scale estimates your body composition with a very small electrical current, according to Soma's full-body scans guide. Soma Axon, the weekly pod Soma Labs is building, uses the same basic method, with the current passing while you stand on its plate with your hands on its grips. Its first version isn't for people with a pacemaker, an implanted defibrillator or another implanted electronic device. If you're unsure, Soma suggests asking your doctor. The pod is meant for general wellness and isn't open yet.
From Full-body scans compared, Blog, FAQ and Compare.
How does Soma Axon's body composition reading compare with a smart scale's?
The basic method matches. Soma says Soma Axon will read body composition the same basic way as a smart scale, with a very small electrical current while you stand on its plate with your hands on its grips. What differs is the setting: a scale lives at home for a 30-second morning step, while the pod is a place you visit weekly, which reads you under the same light, from the same positions and with the same instrument. Soma Labs in Palo Alto is still building this general wellness pod.
What does a 3D body scan measure?
In Soma's full-body scans guide, 3D body scanners, found in gyms, read your body's shape and measurements, estimated fat and lean mass and posture. A scan takes under a minute and uses no radiation, and one scanner maker suggests repeating it every 30 to 90 days. Soma Axon, which Soma Labs is building, reads different things: skin photos, heart and breathing, ECG, EEG, thermal imaging, body composition, balance and grip strength, once a week. Soma's pod isn't a medical device, and it isn't available yet.
From Full-body scans compared, Compare and FAQ.
Does Soma measure how I move?
Soma lists how you move alongside strength and balance under what it calls activity, the things it says change first with age. Its pages don't pin down which sensor handles movement. What's described in detail is the pod's floor plate for balance and its grips for grip strength, read at every visit, plus the Soma app reading your phone and watch between visits. Soma is a general wellness product. Soma Axon and the app aren't available yet, and there's a waitlist.