The ear tickler that helps you lose weight
An ear tickler has been developed as a way to tackle obesity.
The device clips on to the skin inside the ear, where you would put a headphone bud, and uses electrical pulses to stimulate a nerve that links the brain with the stomach and is involved in regulating appetite.
The ear tickler is being tested in a clinical trial in France after a chance discovery found that patients using the therapy to treat other conditions actually lost weight.
The theory is that electrical pulses interfere with appetite signals between the stomach and brain; as a result, patients don’t feel as hungry and eat less throughout the day.
More than 60 per cent of adults were overweight or obese in 2014, defined as having a Body Mass Index (BMI) of 25 or more, according to Public Health england.
The only anti-obesity medication available on prescription is Orlistat, but it has potential side-effects such as flatulence and stomach pain.
Gastric surgery is another option, but it is offered only to those who have a BMI of more than 40, or more than 35 if they have another existing condition, such as type 2 diabetes, which puts them at higher risk of additional diseases.
Like all surgery, gastric surgery carries the risk of blood clots and bleeding; and many local health authorities baulk at the cost. researchers believe the new approach could be a safer and cheaper way to tackle obesity as it has few side-effects.
The approach is known as vagus nerve stimulation. It targets the vagus nerve, which runs from the brain to the abdomen and relays messages to and from the heart, lungs and digestive system. It also has branches in the face.
One of its functions is to pass on messages telling the brain whether the stomach is empty or full.
But it is also involved in regulating processes such as breathing, heart rate, blood pressure and mood, and has been tested as a treatment for conditions as varied as migraines, hypertension and depression.
In a study at the University of Minnesota, researchers found that all the 14 patients who had received vagus nerve stimulation to treat their depression also lost weight, according to the International Journal of Obesity.
animal studies have also shown that vagus nerve stimulation through implants in the neck over one month reduced food intake and weight.
The stimulation is usually given via a surgically implanted electrode into an area such as the neck, chest or gut to directly touch the nerve and affect signals. More recently, external devices have been developed for a less invasive way of treating patients.
The stimulator — neuro Coach II Stim — consists of a tiny electrode clipped to the external part of the ear and connected to a hand-held generator that sends electrical impulses.
a branch of the vagus nerve is located under the skin of the ear, next to the ear canal — where it is easily accessible — making it an ideal target for stimulation.
researchers believe stimulating the nerve interferes with the signals so that the brain does not know what is going on in the gut.
and because the signals are unclear, it switches to a ‘default’ position and assumes the stomach is full, thereby turning off the triggers that encourage appetite.
The thinking is that obese people have constant appetite signals, so interrupting some of them will reduce appetite.
DURING
the year- long study at the University Hospital of Saint-etienne in eastern France, 50 obese people will have the treatment, or a placebo device, to use for 60 minutes four times a day.
Commenting on the trial, Professor David Haslam, chairman of the national Obesity Forum, said: ‘Interfering with the vagus nerve has been an experimental method for weight loss induction.
‘any novel approach should be supported in the hope of a breakthrough, but for now doctors and patients will have to continue to rely on diet and physical activity to lose weight.’