Focus, focus, focus…Focus is challenging in a world of seemingly infinite tabs and multiple devices with their ever-distracting notifications. Enter Mendi with its neurofeedback product that promises to help its users improve their brain health. This means sharpened focus, better sleep, and enhanced mood control by improving the brain’s neuroplasticity.
From Mendo’s website:
“Neuroplasticity is the ability to naturally strengthen your brain. By training and strengthening your brain, you can create new pathways that allow for more mental flexibility and higher function. So, just like the muscles in your body, you can train your brain to be stronger. When you train your brain, you learn to stimulate the flow of oxygenated blood to the area that you are training. The fact that the brain is “plastic” allows for the potential to learn, grow, and change.”
What differentiates Mendo’s solution from other neurofeedback devices ViodiTV has reported on over the years? Mendi’s device uses near-infrared light to detect oxygenated blood flow through the prefrontal cortex (PFC). From that measurement, they can infer how well the mental processes of the executive function are working.
Mendi supplies an app-based, neurofeedback game that provides the intelligence to train the brain. In their game, one moves a ball by using his thoughts. Like all games, the player receives positive feedback for doing well, which also correlates to positive brain activity.
Like any skill, it is about practice. Mendi suggests starting gradually with a goal of 4 or 5 weekly game-playing sessions. Each session should be 10 or 15 minutes long. Breathing exercises are integrated into the app as well.
The app is more than just a game. It allows one to record their “daily mood”. Progress is tracked over time.1 The app also includes educational content about the brain and brain health.2
Mendi also addresses specific professional use cases. For instance, a NASA-funded program is researching brain training protocols to improve cognitive performance and mental fortitude for space travel. Their research partners at KU Leuven (Belgium) use Mendi to manage workplace stress and avoid burnout. of emergency physicians.
Moving Science from the Laboratory to the World
In the above impromptu interview, filmed at CES2024, Moha Bensofia emphasizes Mendi’s science-centric approach. He points out that their chief content officer is a neuroscientist. Mendi’s website lists an impressive roster of testimonials from scientists from Lund University, Princeton, and Stanford.
The Mendi Headset is based on laboratory-based technologies that scientists have used for years to study the brain. Their technique combines signals from relatively low-cost sensors with their proprietary algorithms. As such, their devices are an effective proxy for purpose-built laboratory equipment.3
The benefits of functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) and associated brain training techniques can now move from the university laboratory. They are reaching the mass consumer market.4 This opens up entirely new research domains. It makes it easier for researchers to study mental health in the real world. For instance, the portability of the Mendi device allows real-time measurements of how walking in nature improves mental health.
It is the treatment of mental health issues, such as ADHD and PTSD, that is an even bigger opportunity. As Bensofia states, they aspire “to put them in the hands of everybody.” Mendi is well on its way toward achieving that goal. This is shown by its sub-$300 price and 36,000 reported users.
Footnotes
- It will be interesting to see how data collection from other devices and apps will integrate with Mendi’s app. Devices such as smart rings, smartwatches, and even smart beds could help quantify improvements and changes over time. ↩︎
- This article explaining how focus is a skill is one of the many thought-provoking articles on their website. ↩︎
- This study provides a good explanation of the effectiveness of Mendi’s approach. https://www.krigolsonlab.com/uploads/4/3/8/4/43848243/boere_hecker___krigolson_2023.pdf ↩︎
- According to Mendi, their crowd-sourced campaign was “the most funded and pre-ordered product in the categories of brain and mental health.” This Swedish-based company also received funding from from the European Union’s Horizon 2020 research and innovation programm. ↩︎
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