TEHRAN -- Iran Nanotechnology Innovation Council introduced five nano products for sports during the startup SPORTEX, which was held from July 9 to 12 in Tehran.

Here is the brief description of these nano products manufactured by three Iranian knowledge-based companies.

Nano fabrics

An Iranian knowledge-based company has manufactured nano fabrics for sports wears.

Nano-composite fabrics have many useful functions including cooling the skin in summer, transferring the body moisture to the environment, rapidly drying textiles, increasing blood circulation, increasing cheerfulness, decreasing vascular cramps, and eliminating the bad smell of sweat and at the same time allowing the skin to continue its natural breathing, according to the company website.

One of the fabrics has the ability to rapidly transfer the body moisture to the environment. The presence of micrometric channels in the cross-sectional area of the fiber results in a faster transfer of moisture to a wider level of tissue; therefore, it can increase the evaporation of moisture from the garment.

The heat required for evaporation is provided by the body, and this results in a feeling of dryness and cooling for the person wearing the cooling garment. These features will not be lost by repeated washing of this fiber.

Another kind of fabric can reflect infrared radiations, and thus cool down the body. This product can reflect infrared radiations and have the ability to retransmit these radiations into the body.

When the infrared radiation penetrates the skin, it contacts the molecules of protein, collagen, fat, and water. By creating micrometric fluctuations, a thermal reaction is created which increases the temperature of the body tissue. As blood vessels expand, circulation increases.

Curcumin nanomicellar soft gel

Produced by an Iranian knowledge-based company, the soft gel is composed of yellow pigment in curry spice. Turmeric is the principal curcuminoid in the rhizome of Curcuma longa Linn. The plant is belonging to the ginger family (Zingiberaceae) and is native in India and south-east Asia.

Curcumin may help protect against exercise-induced oxidative stress. Moreover, exercise and sports are notoriously hard on the joints. But numerous studies have shown that curcumin may help support joint health and promote a healthy inflammatory response after vigorous exercise.

Electric muscle stimulation suit

A knowledge-based company and a sports club have jointly designed an electric muscle stimulation suit.

EMS is the elicitation of muscle contraction using electric impulses. The impulses are generated by a device and delivered through electrodes to the skin surface above the muscles to be stimulated. The impulses cause the muscles to contract, so the result is similar to the actual movement and regular contractions of the muscles.

SB/MG