Offaly man co-develops cooling bracelet to aid menopause

An Offaly man is at the centre of a ‘revolutionary’ cooling bracelet to help women manage the debilitating hot flushes of menopause.

The ‘MyCelsius’ bracelet, worn like a wrist watch, enters the Irish market on Wednesday, April 7, and has been co-developed by engineer and Tullamore native Aonghus O’Donovan.

It works by cooling users’ wrists by 10°C in under ten seconds and is designed to dramatically reduce the discomfort of hot flushes. Co-founders O’Donovan, 33, and Maxime Kryvian, 37, the CEO of the start-up cooling tech company, say it has an 80 per cent efficacy rate for women experiencing one of the most uncomfortable perimenopause and menopause symptoms.

“The wrist is one of the most thermally sensitive parts of your body and applying cold to it sends a signal to the hypothalamus (the body’s thermostat), to stop the sweating and flushing associated with a hot flush,” said O'Donovan.

“It uses advanced thermo-electric cooling to create a soothing, cold sensation directly onto the wrist. By lowering local skin temperature, it helps the full body feel cooler in moments of sudden heat.”

The bracelet also works to counteract uncomfortable heat caused by hormonal changes or stress and anxiety.

Women sometimes describe a hot flush as an intense heat, originating in the torso and moving upwards into the neck and chest. It may be accompanied by flushing of the skin and sweating, as well as palpitations and feelings of anxiety and can happen several times a day.

Research in recent years has shown that almost four in ten women in Ireland have considered quitting their jobs due to menopause symptoms. Three years of research has been invested into the non-medical device, which O’Donovan says has a cooling system five times more powerful than competitor products.

Based in Bristol, England, O’Donovan studied Mechanical Engineering at the University of Limerick (UL), which included a year in New York designing heating, ventilation and air conditioning systems for skyscrapers.

He went on to work at Dyson before moving into Formula 1 and aerospace engineering and has since applied design and thermodynamics principles to women’s health - working closely with hundreds of women to develop MyCelsius.

The bracelet has five different modes, including a night-time setting to prevent heat-induced sleep disruption.

The company worked with a community of women that have been integral to shaping the product’s look, feel and functionality.