Body odor is a very serious issue, so serious in fact that there is actually a market for high-tech¹ devices that alert users if they start to stink².

 

体臭是相当严重的一个问题，事实上，能够提醒用户是否有体臭的高科技产品还是挺有市场的。
 

 

The problem with body odor is that you can't really smell it on yourself, and in an exceptionally polite society like Japan's that can put people in uncomfortable situations. Carrying a bottle of deodorant³ on you at all times during the summer is quite common in Japan, but putting on too much of that stuff too often can irritate the skin or stain clothing, so it's not exactly a fool-proof solution. If only we had a way of knowing when we smell, and how bad... Thankfully, Japanese wellness device maker⁴ Tanita just unveiled its newest creation, a handheld smell checker that analyzes⁶ body odor and ranks its intensity⁷ on a scale of 1 to 10.

 

Called the ES-100, Tanita's smell-sensing device was inspired by the company's range of alcohol breath analyzers. They basically adapted their technology to check for odor-producing particulate⁸ matter instead of alcohol and the ES-100 was born.

 

This thing is super-easy to use. Just flip⁹ it open and point the built-in sensor¹⁰ toward the problematic areas of your body. It reportedly takes about 10 seconds for the handheld device to collect and analyze⁵ data, after which it will display a numerical result on its small LED display. 0 means you don't smell, 1 to 4 are acceptable levels of body odor, 5 to 9 should really have you concerned, and I assume a 10 means you're a walking biohazard.

 

Tanita said that it expects the ES-100 smell checker to be really popular with salary men in their 40s and 50s, the ages at which statistics show men start to be more concerned about their potential bad body odor. However, the Japanese company adds that the device could be very useful for other categories as well, like people who want to make sure body odor doesn't ruin their date, or those who work in close proximity¹¹ to other people.

 

The ES-100 was commercially launched on July 1st, with pricing being left up to retailers¹².

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