New Research From Lumen and ARU Cambridge Center for Sport and Exercise Science Reveals the Impact of Low and High Carb Diets on Metabolic Response

The peer-reviewed study utilized the handheld Lumen device to accurately measure the impact of nutritional lifestyle on metabolic state

NEW YORK--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Lumen, the metabolic health company behind the first handheld device to measure your metabolism through the breath, today announced a new peer-reviewed study conducted together with ARU Cambridge Center for Sport and Exercise Science, revealing how the portable Lumen device effectively measures the metabolic state and detects increases of CO₂ levels in response to a high-carbohydrate meal. The study was conducted as a baseline for future studies analyzing the impact of exercise and lifestyle on metabolism.

“Prior to Lumen, the only way to measure your metabolic state was in a lab. This study reveals how Lumen can be used to measure the direct impact of your lifestyle on your body in real-time,” Said -Dr. Merav Mor, Co-founder and Chief Scientist at Lumen. “We discovered that when following a high-carb diet, participants' metabolic state shifted to using carbs for energy, while when following low-carb diet, their body switched to using fats as fuel”.

The study, published in the Journal of the International Society of Sports Nutrition, revealed how the Lumen device detected significantly higher CO₂ readings after a high-carb meal, in a manner similar to the Douglas bag method, which is the gold-standard method to assess metabolic status. Elevated CO₂ levels in the breath signal a carb burning state while lower levels indicate the body is using mostly fat as an energy source.

Researchers also found that acute carbohydrate intake affects the metabolic readings (Lumen levels) across all measurements during the day, highlighting a significant difference between metabolic conditions for low-carb and high-carb diets.

The participant methodology involved twenty seven recreationally active adults who followed a high-carb or low-carb diet for a week, then switched to a low-carb or high-carb diet after a wash-out period. Throughout this period, the participants took end-of-day, morning, and after-meal measurements. This provided the researchers with the ability to cover the participants' metabolic state over their entire daily cycle under regular conditions.

The most effective approach according to researchers for measuring metabolic response through the Lumen device following a high-carbohydrate diet may be better assessed under fasting conditions, while measurements after breakfast may be better suited for monitoring low-carbohydrate diets.

“In this study, Lumen was further validated as an effective at-home metabolic tracking tool which is part of our journey to making metabolic testing accessible to the academic and scientific community. We’re proud to work with ARU Cambridge Center for Sport and Exercise science to further metabolic health research,” added Dr. Shlomo Yeshurun, Head of Research at Lumen.

About Lumen

Lumen is a device and app-based platform that aims to make people metabolically healthier, allowing them to understand the impact of their lifestyle on their body and to achieve their goals. Lumen’s groundbreaking technology analyzes a person’s breath to provide real-time insights about their metabolic state.

Peer-Reviewed

Lumen can provide numerous insights about the metabolic state of an individual, as well as valuable data to increase knowledge of metabolic flexibility and nutrition. In a study conducted by San Francisco State University, Lumen has been peer-reviewed to meet the gold standard for metabolic measurement.

Availability

The Lumen subscription available at Lumen.me and includes a device and app, starting at $249 for a 6-month subscription renewing at $25 monthly. The device comes equipped with a travel case, charging dock, USB-C Cable, and Premium Customer Support. Users can download the app for free on the Apple App Store and on Google Play.

For media: images, video and fact sheet can be found in the press kit here.