Caution - Electronic Body Fat Scales and Pacemakers

Something I was not aware of until recently when I was looking at purchasing some new electronic bathrooom scales:

Caution! Body fat monitors should not be used by anyone with a pacemaker or by pregnant women. The small electric current emitted to measure body fat could interfere with the functioning of pacemakers and may be harmful to pregnant women.

Apparently electronic body fat scales send some kind of electronice wave through your body that may disrupt the pacemaker. I have looked at other scales that also contain the same warning, however there is nothing about electronic scales in my Medtronics Pacemaker book.

6 Comments

Scales

by Red1958 - 2009-01-06 04:01:52

I have been using said scales for 6 months no problem.I have pacer/defib

kiwi- where are located?

by Jade - 2009-01-07 03:01:12

Where are you located and do you know where the board is located? I am in Arkansas, my pc shows 2:02 and I notice the times on your post is 02:42

Electronic Scales

by SnowShadow - 2009-01-07 03:01:36

I have been using an electronic scale for years, even before I got my pacemaker. About six months after I got it, I noticed the warning on it about people with pacemakers shouldn't use it. I called my cardiologist and he said it is okay to use it, that the warning is is, like TraceyE said, I cya thing.

He also said it won't hurt me to go through the security checks at airports or to have them use the wand to check me, but I have found that the TSA people freak out when either on of those happens, so I don't do it anymore.

Sincerely,
Deborah

interference

by Tracey_E - 2009-01-07 05:01:12

You'll find that all sorts of things warn about pm's. I've found that very few of them actually cause problems, but it's a cya world so if there's the remotest chance they will add a warning.

Even if something interferes, all you have to do is keep it more than 6" from your device and you'll be fine. And as soon as you step away from the source of the interference, it stops with no harm done.

TSA

by Tracey_E - 2009-01-08 06:01:21

Deborah, they are taught that the machines will interfere with a pm, that's why they freak out! Cya, again. I don't even bother trying to go through or ask for the wand either. Even though it doesn't hurt us, it *will* set them off so they have to do a patdown anyway. It's faster to just ask for the patdown and move on.

veering off topic a bit... have you ever read the list of approved electronics for take off and landing, usually in the magazine in the seat pocket? We have to turn off the ipod and laptop, but we're allowed to leave the pm on. Woo hoo! LOL I don't know why that always makes me laugh so hard.

Smart scales

by iamsrg - 2022-11-27 15:40:14

Resurrecting this thread as I am buying a smart scale for my husband for a holiday gift and wanted to see if I could use it, too. Found this article and I think I will be just fine. I am pretty chill about my 3rd pacemaker, though. I sail through TSA checkpoints all over the world, keeping my mouth shut about my titanium pacer.
https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/22452409/

You know you're wired when...

You’re officially battery-operated.

Member Quotes

I have an ICD which is both a pacer/defib. I have no problems with mine and it has saved my life.