Medicine as a Lifestyle Commodity
From a normal Bathroom Scale to an essential »Longevity« Station
At CES, Withings is showcasing a technically impressive scale for 60 biomarkers as a longevity station. Behind this lies a bigger problem: medical technologies are becoming consumer gadgets— with big promises of healing and little validation. The new FDA regulation is reinforcing the wellness trend.
Let's call a spade a spade: we're talking about bathroom scales, albeit with certain benefits. The "Body Scan 2" from French medtech company Withings has just been awarded the "CES Innovation Award" in Las Vegas. In addition to pure weight measurement, the connected scale incorporates five medical measurement technologies: a 6-channel ECG, impedance cardiography (ICG), pulse wave velocity (PWV), ultra-high frequency bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS), and two AI-supported risk models. The device has a total of eight electrodes integrated into the glass surface, with four more in the pull-out handle, and the 12 measurement points allow a complete scan of the body to be performed. This measurement takes 90 seconds, and a high-resolution LCD color screen in the handle displays the results immediately. The rechargeable battery of the bathroom tool is designed to last up to 15 months.
Five Medical Technologies in one Scale
The second-generation integrated impedance cardiography measures cardiac pump function through impedance changes in the thorax during the systolic and diastolic phases. In the pursuit of eternal youth, Withings promises to provide information about cardiac output, cardiac reactivity, and a calculated "heart age." ICG has been discussed clinically for decades—but as an alternative to invasive pulmonary artery catheters in intensive care patients. The method is established in hemodynamically stable patients, but its reliability in variable circulatory situations is controversial in the specialist literature.
In general, "age" is the evil demon of longevity. The pulse wave velocity function measures arterial stiffness in the arms and legs and uses this to determine "vascular age." This measurement is actually considered an established early warning indicator for cardiovascular risks—provided it is performed under standardized conditions. Whether self-measurement in the bathroom achieves comparable reproducibility remains to be seen.
Ultra-high frequency bioimpedance spectroscopy (BIS) is used to determine cell health, metabolic efficiency, and "cell age." BIS uses a frequency spectrum for body analysis and distinguishes between intracellular and extracellular water. However, there are no international recommendations or standards for BIS in clinical practice, and its supposed superiority over single-frequency methods has not been conclusively proven. Both methods are said to underestimate fat-free body mass in people of normal weight and overestimate it in overweight people.
AI Models for High Blood Pressure and Blood Sugar
Of course, the "Longevity Station" cannot do without artificial intelligence: Withings integrates two proprietary AI models: one for risk assessment for arterial hypertension and another for blood sugar metabolism disorders. Hypertension is detected without a blood pressure cuff – simply by "stepping on the scale." How the model was trained, what data sets it is based on, and what sensitivity and specificity it achieves remain unclear to the public for now. Withings describes the AI models as "clinically validated" and states that it has collaborated with cardiologists and researchers. The algorithms are reportedly based on "billions of real-world measurements from the Withings ecosystem."
The Body Scan 2 currently has neither FDA approval nor CE certification for its core functions. In the US, FDA clearance for hypertension risk notifications and atrial fibrillation detection using 6-channel ECG is still pending. The Body Scan 1 is certified for this function. In Europe, CE approval for the corresponding measurements is still pending. The market launch planned for the second quarter of 2026 is currently still explicitly dependent on these regulatory approvals. The price is expected to be just under $600.
And now? From Measured Value to "Health History"
The technology is certainly impressive, but what happens to the readings in everyday life? How should people use the scale as an indicator of their health? The Withings app summarizes all measurement results in a "health history value" and provides personalized recommendations. In addition, users must answer questions about their lifestyle via two integrated buttons in order to receive "practical tips for a longer and healthier life." These formulations signal a fundamental change in perspective: the focus is not on the early detection of diseases, but on the optimization of health as a continuous self-management project.
Withings explicitly positions the Body Scan 2 as a "longevity station" and uses this buzzword to address a booming segment, thanks in no small part to gurus such as Bryan Johnson (quote: "Death is a technical problem that can be solved"). The global market for longevity is expected to be worth over $600 billion by 2028. However, the scientific substance behind many longevity promises is thin. Treatments such as cold chambers, red light therapy, or the administration of rapamycin are mostly not based on evidence-based medicine, but on animal experiments or individual experiences. Alena Buyx, ethicist and former chair of the German Ethics Council, predicts: "In a few years, there will be little real effect and quite a lot of uselessness."
Between Innovation and the Obsession with Self-Optimization
The Body Scan 2 is, of course, just one example of the convergence of medicine and consumer electronics that has been initiated by tech gadgets. Almost all of the "health devices" on display at CES fall into this category. But this special scale impressively demonstrates how technologies originally intended for medical use are being transferred from the clinical context to consumer products and marketing promises. The technical integration is ambitious, the sensor technology sophisticated. But the crucial question remains unanswered: What do these measurements mean for people without medical training? A "heart age" of 45 instead of 40 – is that relevant? A "cell age" that is two years above the chronological age – what does that mean?
Of course, preventive health care makes sense. And if the smartwatch detects a heart attack, that's also very positive. But the line between evidence-based early detection and self-optimizing continuous monitoring, with the associated fear and exaggerated precautions, is becoming increasingly blurred. According to studies, some users are already succumbing to stress due to wearable-driven continuous monitoring.
FDA concessions for questionable "wellness" products
Regulatory developments are further exacerbating the problem: On January 6, 2026, FDA Commissioner Marty Makary announced new guidelines at CES that exempt even more wellness wearables from medical device regulations. The FDA wants to operate "at the speed of Silicon Valley" in the future and is giving wellness tools with a relatively low risk free rein – as long as they do not make any clinical diagnosis or therapy claims.
Specifically, this means that wearables that non-invasively track blood pressure, blood sugar, or heart rate fall under the wellness exception, provided they are intended "exclusively for wellness purposes." This is precisely where the problem lies with products such as the Withings Body Scan 2: two features—the hypertension risk notification and the 6-channel ECG for atrial fibrillation detection—require FDA approval. But while Withings is hoping for a "new type of certification" for these features, which is supposed to be faster, the company has already shown how to circumvent regulatory hurdles: the vascular age feature was deliberately launched as a "wellness product" to avoid approval.
The FDA's relaxations thus systematically create incentives to declare medically relevant measurements as "wellness" – and thus exempt them from any scientific validation and clinical review. Cindy Cohn of the Electronic Frontier Foundation warns urgently: "I would strongly advise people not to think that technology is the same as a well-trained, thoughtful, research-driven medical professional." What's more, the health data collected is not covered by HIPAA protection (Withings is voluntarily compliant), so it can basically be used to train AI models or resold.
Top-notch Technology, Medical Benefits Remain Unclear
At CES, Withings promises to "make the creeping consequences of our lifestyle visible long before symptoms appear." That sounds appealing—but it presupposes that the measurements are valid, reproducible, and clinically relevant. As long as study protocols, validation data, and independent scientific publications are lacking, the longevity scale remains an absolutely solid technological statement with unanswered medical and data technology questions—and thus a wellness gadget of the consumer age, which is geared toward maximum profit rather than real health.
The CES Innovation Award recognizes innovative technologies, not their clinical or everyday usefulness. It's important to keep this in mind when the marketing machine kicks into gear with its high-impact "wow" factor and the first devices are delivered amid much social media fanfare.
